A potential returns agreement to send migrants back to Turkey appears unlikely to go ahead, after reports that Home Office officials said it was not a safe country due to human rights concerns.
The Times said that ministers’ hopes for a returns deal, along the same lines as the current agreement with Albania, has collapsed after an internal review said Turkey was “a state that does not meet the criteria of being ‘generally safe’”.
Rishi Sunak and other leading Tories have hailed the Albania deal as key success in the Prime Minister’s bid to stop small boats crossings in the Channel. But it now appears a similar agreement with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is unlikely to happen.
The proportion of Turkish nationals arriving in the UK on small boats jumped from 2% in 2022 to more than 10% last year.
According to the paper, the Home Office review found that an analysis showed that 99% of Turkish asylum cases to the UK were based on “a fear of the state”, with the document also critical of the country’s “over-zealous” use of anti-terrorism law and the independence of the courts.
This decision by the Home Office is very concerning.
As Home Secretary I worked up proposals to list Turkey as a safe country : a member of the Council of Europe, a NATO ally and a Candidate country for EU accession.
The government should re-think this decision. https://t.co/6Nd85bOazs
— Suella Braverman MP (@SuellaBraverman) February 2, 2024
A Home Office spokesperson said: “International cooperation plays a crucial part in tackling illegal migration and the UK and Turkey are close strategic partners, with a future-focused relationship.
“Where an individual has no legal right to be in the UK, we will seek to return them to their home country. Protection claims are considered on their individual merits in accordance with our international obligations – no-one who is found to be at risk of persecution or serious harm will be returned.”
Mr Sunak has made his pledge to “stop the boats” central to his premiership. More than 1,000 migrants have arrived in the UK so far this year after crossing the Channel.
Former home secretary Suella Braverman said it was a “very concerning” decision.
In a post on X, she said: “As Home Secretary I worked up proposals to list Turkey as a safe country: a member of the Council of Europe, a NATO ally and a Candidate country for EU accession.
“The government should re-think this decision.”
Downing Street on Friday said Turkey was a safe country, as it sought to play down the report.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “We do and can return people to Turkey. There’s been no changes to the arrangements we have between the UK and Turkey.
“We announced a strengthened migration partnership with Turkey last summer.
“Formal return agreements are just one of the many levers we’ve got at our disposal.”
Mr Sunak discussed “ongoing UK-Italy collaboration to tackle criminal people smuggling gangs and deal with illegal migration” in a phone call with Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni on Friday morning.
“The Prime Minister noted the passage of the Italy-Albania agreement, and leaders agreed to continue working closely together to develop innovative partnerships across Europe and with countries along the migration route,” according to a Downing Street read-out.