UK Edition
More than 1,000 faith leaders have warned that plans to criminalise migrants crossing the Channel in small boats are “without basis in evidence or morality.”
They have written to Boris Johnson urging him to reconsider sweeping asylum reforms, urging him not to "close the door" on those fleeing persecution.
It has been signed by 1,028 figures in the six major faith groups including Dr Rowan Williams, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Zara Mohammed, the secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, Rose Hudson-Wilkin, the Bishop of Dover, as well as rabbis, Hindu, Sikh and Buddhist leaders.
The letter will be presented at Number 10 on Monday to coincide with the Government’s Nationality and Borders Bill reaching the report stage of the House of Lords.
British values will be ‘fundamentally damaged’ by Bill
Urging the Prime Minister to make substantial changes to the Bill, the letter stated: "While there is still conflict and injustice in the world, there will always be desperate people needing to seek sanctuary from war, persecution and suffering. We cannot close our door on them, but this Bill does just that.
"We assert that the values that bind UK citizens together, especially those concerning human dignity and life, will be fundamentally damaged by this Bill."
They called for the Government to abandon plans to criminalise and restrict the rights of those coming to the UK by crossing the English Channel using small boats or on lorries, a policy they said was made "without a basis in evidence or morality".
They urged the Government to establish safe and legal routes through the Bill, calling on Mr Johnson to show "political leadership" and be "compassionate and ambitious" in his plans.
A second letter signed by Lord Walker, the former supreme court judge, Dominic Grieve, the former attorney general, David Davis, the former Cabinet minister, Lord Kerr, the former head of the diplomatic service, and David Blunkett, the former Home Secretary, claimed that the Bill would “significantly breach” key UK international obligations.
They said the Bill’s proposed two-tier system where those who arrive illegally in the UK will be barred from full citizenship was at odds with the 1951 Refugee Convention which permitted no such distinction.
‘Most comprehensive reform in decades’
A spokesman for the Home Office said: "The Government has a proud history of supporting people in need, including those in Ukraine, and that is not about to change.
"The Nationality and Borders Bill, which has already been backed by MPs, will deliver the most comprehensive reform in decades to protect the vulnerable and ensure fairness in our asylum system.
"For the first time, we will be able to differentiate between those who arrive here through safe and legal routes and those who arrive here having had the opportunity to claim asylum already in a safe country.
"This Bill reduces the incentives for people to make dangerous and lethal crossings and introduces a maximum sentence of life behind bars for evil people smugglers. Our policy is aimed at preserving life."