The Home Secretary has unveiled a groundbreaking agreement with France that will see illegal small boat arrivals returned across the Channel whilst Britain accepts an equal number of asylum seekers through legal routes.
Yvette Cooper announced the reciprocal exchange mechanism in the Commons today, describing it as "an important step towards undermining the business model" of criminal smuggling networks.
Under the new arrangement, individuals who cross illegally from France can be sent back, whilst the UK will accept those who apply through proper channels and pass security checks on a one-for-one basis.
The scheme will operate through a carefully controlled process, with transfers to Britain matching the number of people readmitted to France.
Yvette Cooper set out the terms of the new agreement in Parliament
PARLIAMENT / PA
"We have agreed to establish a safe, reciprocal exchange mechanism for individuals in France who apply with appropriate documentation to be transferred to the UK, subject to clear eligibility criteria and stringent security checks," Cooper told MPs.
Priority will be given to applicants with UK connections, those most likely to qualify for refugee status, and individuals particularly vulnerable to exploitation by smuggling networks.
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The Home Secretary confirmed that full details of the scheme will be published in immigration rules once final arrangements are completed.
Cooper emphasised that the agreement directly challenges the promises made by people smugglers to desperate migrants.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer (3L) and his wife Victoria Starmer, alongside France's President Emmanuel Macron (2L) and his wife Brigitte Macron (L) attend a ceremony at the statue of war-time Prime Minister Winston ChurchillGETTY
Recovered small boats in DoverPA"This innovative agreement means people who undertake illegal and dangerous journeys to the UK, putting their own and other lives at risk and paying money to fuel an entire criminal industry, being returned to France, where the boats set off from," she said.
The Home Secretary argued this fundamentally undermines the criminal gangs' business model: "It's also the first step in undermining the promise made by criminal gangs when they tell people that if they go to the UK, they cannot be returned to the UK. Now they can be."
The Home Secretary defended the approach as both humanitarian and practical, stating: "This is the right thing to do. Establishing a principle that the UK will always be ready to play its part along with other countries in helping those fleeing persecution and conflict."
Cooper stressed that asylum should be managed through proper channels rather than dangerous crossings. "We believe this should be done in a controlled, managed, legal way. Not through dangerous, illegal or uncontrolled routes," she told the Commons.
The agreement marks a significant shift in cross-Channel migration policy, creating a formal mechanism for returns whilst maintaining Britain's commitment to protecting genuine refugees through safe, legal pathways.