Suella Braverman plans to lock up children - but her plan won't work, MPs told

13 March 2023 , 19:24

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Suella Braverman's small boats plan was savaged in the Commons

Callous Suella Braverman's small boats bill was tonight backed by Tory MPs, in spite of warnings it won't work and will see CHILDREN locked up.

But embarrassingly for the Home Secretary, former PM Theresa May was among the Tories to speak out against the cruel legislation.

The Commons heard that youngsters like Olympic hero Sir Mo Farah - who was trafficked as a child - will be denied citizenship, while women would have slavery protection removed.

Ms Braverman was accused of wasting Parliamentary time by putting forward plans she admits may not even be legal.

In a scathing address to the Commons, Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described the Illegal Migration Bill as a "traffickers charter" and added: "How low have the Tory Party fallen?"

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MPs were told that the government's bill will not solve the problem (AFP via Getty Images)

She branded the Tory plan a "con", fuming: ."It will lock up children and remove the support and safe refuge for women who have been trafficked and could well deny citizenship from people like Mo Farah."

And Mrs May - herself a former Home Secretary - piled the misery on Ms Braverman, saying: "Anybody who thinks that this Bill will deal with the issue of illegal migration once and for all is wrong."

The former PM has warned modern slavery victims will be "collateral damage", saying: "The Home Office knows this Bill means genuine victims of modern slavery will be denied support."

Under the plans, people who arrive in small boats will be barred from claiming asylum, and will not be able to claim protection under Modern Slavery laws.

Ms Cooper said: "The bill is a con, the bill will actually make things worse."

And she added: "This is about a lame Prime Minister making promises he has no intention of keeping. All he wants is a dividing line, all he wants is to pick a fight, all he wants is someone else to blame.

"He doesn't care if our international reputation or some very vulnerable people pay the price."

Former PM Theresa May spoke out against the bill (PA)

Outlining the devastating impact it could have on trafficked women, she said: "Consider what it means for a young Vietnamese woman who's been trafficked into sexual exploitation, repeatedly raped and beaten by the criminal gangs who brought her and control and dictate her life.

"Under this bill when police find her when they bust the brothel she won't be able to get any modern slavery support any more, won't be able to go to a safe house. Instead she'll be locked up in one of the Home Office detention centres."

Defending the bill, Tory Marco Longhi said people were travelling from “the other side of Africa or from other godforsaken country all the way to Calais”.

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In an extraordinary admission, the first page of Ms Braverman's bill says she is unable to state that the legislation is legal.

Labour MP Clive Lewis said: "If the government wants to have a fight with the courts it should have a fight with the courts rather than waste this House's time."

Despite this, the bill passed by a margin of 312-250.

Earlier Caroline Nokes had become the first Tory MP to rally against the legislation, saying: "I might be an outlier in my party but I think we have an absolute duty to treat people humanely to keep people safe. I have absolute horror at the prospect."

But shameless Ms Braverman told the Commons: "Millions of legal migrants, including my parents, have experienced this warmth first-hand. But the British people are also realistic - they know that our capacity to help people is not unlimited."

Dave Burke