A centre-right organisation committed to strengthening political, economic, social, environmental, and security cooperation between the UK & continental Europe.
5/ The plan that has been set out by the @Conservatives is welcome, by committing 3% of GDP by 2030 and a £17bn Sovereign Defence Fund to back UK defence firms. As @KemiBadenoch has said, rearming 🇬🇧 cannot wait.
1/ The Conservative European Forum has long argued for stronger collective European defence and security. European democracies have within our power the ability to act for our own defence if we choose to. This means being prepared to have difficult conversations with the electorate about the trade-offs required and a greater sense of strategic urgency than is evident today.
4/ Our defence must be funded properly, and it must be funded at pace. Industry warned for years how long it takes to build capacity at scale, with many of those warnings having been ignored by the Govt.
This is the wrong answer to a serious and complex challenge.
Migrants are not ‘illegal’ until they have had their asylum claim refused, which is dependent upon their ability to make a claim in the first place.
It also misses the bigger picture, that many countries refuse to take back their nationals. The answer is a new European Sanctions Regime to ensure anyone in the UK illegally can be removed straight away.
Read our report at https://t.co/PRULykHZpJ
New EU return rules agreed #migrationEU.
Swifter, effective procedures to return those with no right to stay in the EU. Stronger safeguards.
@EUCouncil and @Europarl_EN agreement will strengthen the EU's migration and asylum system.
🔗 Read more: https://t.co/MEVarqont7
I welcome the trilogue agreement that delivers a swifter, simpler, and more effective policy for returning non-EU nationals with no right to stay—all while strictly upholding fundamental rights and international law.
https://t.co/SK8v0kQ22j
I enjoyed chairing today's All Party Parliamentary Group on Europe discussion ahead of the next UK/EU summit with Sir Julian Knight, Sir Vince Cable, and Leena Linnis from the European Parliament UK office. Very Interesting meeting @ConsEurope@EUinUK
CEF Patron & Europe APPG Co-Chair @LordKirkhope today chaired a meeting with @JulianBKing, @LeenaLinnus and @vincecable on UK–EU security & defence cooperation, with further discussion on European Parliament perspectives and business priorities for the next phase of UK–EU relations.
Former Lord Chancellor @RobertBuckland says ECHR membership isn't pivotal to UK immigration policy, which is mainly governed by other conventions and domestic law. Withdrawal would threaten NI stability and the 🇬🇧🇪🇺 trade deal. The UK should seek reform, not start a lengthy exit process 👇
Read our new report at https://t.co/PRULykHZpJ.
This is not only unworkable and divisive rhetoric from @ZiaYusufUK - far from securing our borders, it would jeopardise the UK's national security.
The @Conservatives must now offer a credible alternative and drop proposals to leave the ECHR.
Read our new report at https://t.co/PRULykIxfh
CEF President and former Lord Chancellor @DLidington says the argument for leaving the ECHR deserves a great deal more scrutiny and scepticism than it has so far received 👇
Read the paper at https://t.co/KudYNGEc74
The Chișinău Declaration earlier this month has presented a real opportunity for the UK to lead Europe's response to irregular migration.
@dominicgrieve_'s new report sets out an alternative path:
🔹ECHR reform
🔹A collective European sanctions regime for countries refusing to take back their nationals
🔹Access to Eurodac and SIS II
🔹Engagement with the new EU Migration Pact
🔹Domestic changes to the Human Rights Act
https://t.co/Sz5o4lYlMQ
This is completely untrue @CPhilpOfficial.
The problem is not that small boat arrivals have been ‘allowed to stay’ by the courts, but the fact that many countries will not take back their nationals, something which has nothing to do with the ECHR.
Leaving is a false solution to illegal migration and is actively preventing the @Conservatives from developing policies that could work.
Shabana Mahmood and Labour are more interested in their leadership squabbles than keeping out illegal immigrants.
93% of illegal immigrants arriving by small boat are being allowed to stay because Labour refuses to leave the ECHR and stop activist courts blocking removals.
No wonder the boats keep coming. We need:
- No asylum claims from illegal immigrants
- Leave the ECHR Fast-track removals
- Real border control
Only the Conservatives under new leadership will stop this madness.
As our new report shows, not only would leaving the ECHR be a false solution to illegal migration, but the consequences of withdrawal would be severe:
🔹Undermining the Belfast Agreement and risking political instability in NI, with just 36 words dedicated to the issue in the @Conservatives recent Alternative King's Speech
🔹Putting our place in the Council of Europe at risk, leaving us in the unwelcome company Russia and Belarus
🔹Terminating Part Three of the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement, ending co-operation with Europol and Eurojust
🔹Making it more difficult to extradite foreign criminals back to other European countries
These problems remain unsolved.
@reformparty_uk immigration policy is in disarray.
The @Conservatives must now reconsider proposals to leave the ECHR and present a serious, credible plan to tackle irregular migration at the next General Election.
Robert’s answer is not Reform policy.
As the person responsible for our deportation plan I want ensure people know where we stand:
If a foreign national lives in social housing at taxpayer expense, they automatically fail our economic test and will be deported.