So who is going to be brave enough to ask whether Shabana Mahmood's proposed reforms are right/sensible/racist?

See the thing is we have heard before that laws were going to be changed but it still made no difference because it turned out to still be unenforceable under human rights law and we still were not able to remove people who had no right to be here. Sadly I think the bulk of this is all rhetoric and I feel very cynical that any meaningful change will be seen.

It is depressing, the scapegoats of both immigrants and disabled being blamed for the state of a smoking ruin of an economy by the very arsonists that burned it down. Things are just going to get alot worse.

Unfortunately, people get upset about other people who they consider to be given unfair advantages to themselves, their family or their friends.

The Home Secretary has cited this as one of the reasons for reform of the asylum system.

It cannot be fair that if you are a man that turns up illegally on our shores and claims asylum, that you are given free accommodation, whether in an HMO, disused barracks or hotels. However, if a UK single male ends up homeless for whatever reason, they are bottom of the pile for obtaining accommodation and are expected to pitch a tent somewhere.

Or UK citizens who get married to non-UK citizens who then have to jump through hoops to bring their partners to live in the UK but those granted asylum and leave to remain have a much easier route to bring not only partners and children to the UK but also extended family members.

It is situations like these which is stoking uneasy tensions between established groups of society in the UK.

We supposedly pride ourselves on this being a fair society. We know that it isn't really, but we need to still pretend it is. And one way to do this is to not give settled asylum seekers more rights than Joe Bloggs down the road in relation to housing and family reunification.

I’m not sure why people applaud someone who is settled having their status removed when two minutes ago a similar policy was deemed racist by Starmer. The hypocrisy is incredible.

On shutting down family reunification there are plenty of men in the world who are ready to take the risk regardless.

Let’s see. If it doesn’t work I expect the electorate will demand something else that does. Labour can’t rely on this is ‘culture wars’ as they did at the last GE.

FWIW, I wouldn't actually support open borders but feel free to pretend that this is what I think. I don't really care if you choose to misrepresent me. It doesn't matter.

As it happens, I very rarely use the word "bigoted". I find it too vague to have much real meaning. I do call out racism when I see it, and I know that bothers some people.

I have no idea what serious or difficult issues you think I'm trying to sidestep. Perhaps you could elaborate.

Yes. This woefully naive assumption that everyone arriving is just so grateful to be here and can’t wait to integrate and work is laughable.

She has said she will improve legal routes for migrants to come, and she is keeping a path for refugees to come, their status will however be reviewed, which I think is necessary with the current chaos.

If it doesn't work and men come because women and children can't? Men are already coming in high numbers. Her plan should hopefully do something about this.

What do you think should be done?

Thousand of undocumented young men coming into the UK unchecked…,now that is ‘depressing’.

Oh, blah. Whatever we said unless ‘OPEN BORDERS NOW’ would be deemed as ‘depressing’. I’ve seen a lot of your posts and you never ever ever address the serious issues we have with these ‘asylum seekers’. You sidestep anything difficult and just call everyone bigoted.

Yes, there's a whole industry of activist lawyers, charities etc who will move heaven and earth to defend the rights of rapists and murderers to stay in the UK.

But if Labour don't sort this out, they're toast.

Yes the rapes and murders.

I think @MrsBennetsPoorNervesAreBack is right. It's a depressing thread.

I hope the UK is never at war then, or being gay becomes punishable by death, that you are totally oppressed because you were born a woman etc.

Yes if the left don’t veto it.

I take it you’re a Labour voter but why ‘compassionate’?

And if it doesn’t work and men in particular arrive because women and children can’t is it still good?

Neither are you

Are you calling me a white supremacist? That would be a new one, so at least you're being original. But you might want to go away and do some reading to find out what that actually means.

I think you're probably trying to be goady but I can't really be arsed to engage. You're just not worth the effort.

They're being forced to look as if they're actually going to tackle the problem Great in theory but it's not going to happen. Too many whinging liberals and human rights lawyers who will have a field day with this.

Right. I love her - she's tough but compassionate. People framing her as Suella 2.0 are getting her completely wrong. She's fighting with racism from the far right and far-left critics who accuse her of being cruel : but I trust she will stick to her guns.

I hope she'll be the next PM : Mette Fredriksen provides a good blueprint imo.

People swim the bloody channel. I've been across it dozens of times in small boats in all weathers.

We are approving "asylum" for people who've been in other European countries for years and acquired long criminal records.

But oh dear, we will be hated by the depressed empathetic people if we don't.

I'm glad she gets that this issue is dividing the nation. It's a class issue.

If you're comfortably off and living in a middle class neighbourhood, you're not affected.

There are around 54 countries in Africa, 43–48 in Asia, 12 in South America, 14 in Oceania, and 33 in the Americas.

We know why they come to Britain, for the golden ticket, as it's now being called by Labour.

They can choose a nearer country for a better life in their own region. I'm sure there are plenty of empathetic people in Africa, Asia, South America, Oceania and the Americas and lots of room for them to settle without any need to leave those regions to travel all the way to golden ticket Britain for the golden ticket.

This white supremacist attitude that only our empathetic golden ticket is good enough to stop you hating us, and feeling depressed about your hatred of us, is being exploited ruthlessly.