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Robert Jenrick resigns as immigration minister in protest of Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda policy
Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick has proposed that details of nationality, immigration and visa status should be recorded whenever a criminal is convicted.
Mr Jenrick introduced amendments to the government’s criminal justice bill, saying the data would help inform deportation and visa policy.
“We want to apply a higher level of scrutiny to high-risk nationalities,” he said.
Rishi Sunak is under pressure to cut net immigration numbers.
Revised estimates published in November showed net immigration – the difference between the number of people entering the UK and those leaving the UK – will reach a record high of 745,000 in 2022.
Mr Jenrick resigned as immigration minister in December in protest at the Prime Minister’s plan to deport Rwanda.
His amendments, first reported by the Daily Telegraph, would require Parliament to issue a report each year collating the nationality, visa and asylum status of all offenders convicted in the courts of England and Wales in the past 12 months. means to submit to.
Mr Jenrick’s proposals are backed by 25 MPs, including Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg and Sir Robert Buckland.
If introduced, the amendment would be one of dozens proposed for the criminal justice bill.
The full bill must be voted on by the entire House of Commons to continue through parliament, and if supported by a majority of MPs it becomes part of government policy.
A government source told the BBC: “We will consider the amendments and consult with colleagues in the normal way.”
Mr Jenrick told BBC Radio 4’s Today program that in his role as immigration minister “we [the UK] They were importing crime. ”
He said: “In the area of drug production, the National Crime Agency has made clear that a significant proportion of the UK drug trade is supported by Albanian drug production.”
He added that this led to “a great deal of time spent trying to stop it.”
Mr Jenrick said nationality was already taken into account when assessing visa applications as part of a “risk-based” strategy.
“What I’m proposing is that this data on crime plays a part in that. We want to apply a higher level of scrutiny to high-risk nationalities,” he said. Ta.
Although details of the nationality of those who commit crimes are not collated, the Home Office regularly publishes details of the nationality of offenders who end up serving prison sentences.
As of the end of June 2023, there were 10,321 foreign nationals in prison in England and Wales, out of a total prison population of 85,851.
More than half of the foreign prisoners were Europeans. The most common nationalities were Albanian, Polish, Romanian, Irish, and Jamaican.
Denmark and some U.S. states are applying similar approaches, he said.
Jenrick said that in Denmark, “some citizens are actually more law-abiding than Danish citizens, but many are not and, as in the case of Denmark, some citizens are responsible for violent crime.” It is very noticeable that this has happened.”
He said the data would allow the government to “study” crime statistics and make policy choices.
“The public should recognize the trade-offs of immigration,” he said. “There’s a myth going around that it’s a pure commodity. I don’t think that’s always the case.”
Convicted criminals are already subject to visa restrictions. British government guidelines state that foreigners who have been convicted of a criminal offense in the UK or abroad and sentenced to imprisonment for 12 months or more will “generally” be refused a visa to enter the UK.
Mr Jenrick later told the BBC: “We cannot hope to solve the immigration system without understanding the problem.”
He added: “There is growing concern that the UK is importing crime, particularly violent crime, sexual assault and drug production. We need to ensure transparency so that we can formulate this,” he added.
“An open immigration system poses serious problems for our communities, but without data we can’t have an informed discussion.”
