The Illegal Migration Bill is set to face further obstacles in Parliament as it returns to the Commons. After suffering numerous defeats in the House of Lords, new amendments have been introduced to address concerns regarding the welfare of detained children and pregnant women. However, MPs will have to vote on these changes, which have received support from the Lords.
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In the midst of this, it has been revealed that the Home Office is funding thousands of empty hotel beds to accommodate migrants and prevent overcrowding at processing centres. To address some of the criticisms, the Home Office has put forward a series of concessions, such as limiting the detention of unaccompanied children to eight days instead of the initially proposed 28. Additionally, the bill will prevent the retrospective removal of individuals who have already entered the UK without permission. Pregnant women will still be subject to a maximum detention period of 72 hours, extendable to seven days with the authorization of a minister.
