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UK Borders Bill

The hon. Gentleman may have a point and the hon. Member for Thurrock’s point about soft targets is particularly relevant. In a case that had been going on for eight years, the person concerned had come to this country from France. I was always under the impression that people should be sent back to the first safe country they went to for their asylum application to be heard. I could not quite understand how, after eight years, someone was still being dealt with here, having made it clear that they made their first application in France. There is one elephant in the room that it would be impossible not to mention with regard to immigration the European Union. A huge amount of people are coming into this country perfectly legally from the EU, far more than the Government ever predicted. In terms of people coming from outside the EU, the Minister will agree that our border controls can only be as good as the border controls in the EU. If people get into the EU without any particular problem, it makes it easier for them to get from those countries into the UK. The excellent Speakout campaign has gained a lot of support across the country and has found that well over 80 per cent. support the view that Britain should get back control of its own borders. I would advise the Minister that if he really wishes to make a difference on immigration, we should get back our border controls rather than handing them over to the EU.