Shabana Mahmood threatens Eritrea visa ban over migrant returns

UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has threatened to impose sanctions on Eritrea, including a visa ban, if the country continues to refuse to take back migrants who have no right to stay in Britain. The warning was discussed in a broadcast debate that focused on failures in the UK returns system and on whether the threat will be followed through.

The debate highlighted the scale of the issue. Nearly 6,000 Eritreans are said to have arrived in the first half of this year, while only two were deported. One contributor claimed that people arriving by small boat or in the back of a lorry face around a 3 per cent chance of deportation, and that only 4 per cent of those who lose asylum claims are sent back anywhere. Another guest disputed the framing of wider deportation figures, saying that a rise in deportations mostly involved visa overstayers rather than people who had crossed the Channel illegally.

A specific case was used to illustrate the concern. A 35-year-old Eritrean man, Radiet Meles, had previously been jailed for five years for attempted rape. He was not deported to Eritrea, was not monitored and was free to roam the streets. He later committed rape in South Wales and is now back in prison. The case prompted fresh questions about why people with serious convictions and failed asylum seekers are not removed.

The panel was divided on how far the UK should go. Labour peer Lord Maurice Glasman backed the visa ban and said reciprocity should be the basis of post-Brexit foreign policy. If other countries will not take back illegal immigrants, he argued, the UK should not accept anybody at all. He also said the policy should apply to all countries, not just Eritrea, and that anyone crossing the Channel should be deported immediately. He accepted this would require leaving current legal frameworks.

Another guest, referred to as Norman, said the Home Secretary appeared serious about challenging countries that are being difficult. He drew a distinction between genuine refugees, failed asylum seekers and people applying for visas. Failed asylum seekers should be deported, he said, and if they are not, visa applications should be refused. He described Eritrea as an outlier because the government has reached returns agreements with other countries, and said it was sensible to explore that route. He also argued that people who commit crimes serious enough to attract a prison sentence of more than a year should be deported automatically.

The discussion also touched on Eritrea's record. One guest described it as an incredibly repressive country, one of the worst in the world, and said almost any Eritrean could claim asylum in Britain if they could get here. Lord Glasman rejected the idea that this should determine UK policy, saying it was not Britain's responsibility and that it was condescending and racist to suggest repressive countries cannot develop their own politics. He said the UK must establish secure borders and warned that uncontrolled migration risks turning a tolerant country into one that distrusts foreigners.

The Home Secretary's threat remains a warning rather than a confirmed policy. The debate reflected wider pressure on the government to show that immigration enforcement works, and scepticism about whether tough rhetoric will be followed by action. The immediate question is whether Eritrea will begin accepting returns, or whether the UK will move ahead with visa restrictions.