UK’s plans to seize asylum seekers’ phones condemned by campaigners | Immigration and asylum
Home Office plans to immediately start seizing asylum seekers’ mobile phones and SIM cards without the need for detention have been condemned by a lawyer and anti-torture campaigners.
People arriving by small boat and sent to the Manston processing center in Kent will be eligible for electronic device searches from Monday, with data download technology in place, a minister has said.
Authorities will be allowed to search the inside of detainees’ mouths for secret technology, but have so far refused to confirm whether they will also be allowed to search children.
Keir Starmer is trying to restrict unauthorized immigration across the Channel as he tries to combat an election threat from Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party.
Natasha Tsangarides, deputy director of NGO Freedom Against Torture, said: “It is deeply inhumane to subject helpless and traumatized men, women and children to invasive searches, including examination of their clothing and even their mouths, so soon after they have survived a horrific Channel crossing.
“The indiscriminate application of these powers to anyone arriving by small boat risks treating all refugees as security threats, regardless of the evidence, and shows a shocking disregard for the fundamental right to privacy.”
A lawyer whose firm represents dozens of asylum seekers questioned whether the government’s plans would comply with the high court’s 2022 ruling on mobile phone seizures.
Jonah Mendelsohn, of Wilson Solicitors, said the government had not established any form of independent oversight to ensure searches were fair and legal.
“To comply with legal standards set by the Supreme Court, the use of intrusive searches and data extraction requires independent authorization and oversight,” Mendelsohn said. “It is not clear whether the legislation includes such safeguards.
“The suggestion that mobile phone searches will be launched in Manston also raises concerns that searches will be carried out extensively on new arrivals and risks repeating failures previously identified by the courts.”
Thousands of asylum seekers arriving in the UK after crossing the Channel by boat are being processed by Home Office officials and contractors at the facility near Ramsgate in Kent. Many new arrivals are vulnerable and arrive in the UK traumatized.
Under the new powers, officers will have the right to make those arriving at UK ports remove their outer coat, jacket or gloves to search for devices. They will also be able to search someone’s mouth to find a hidden SIM card or small electronic device.
Home Office sources have previously told the Guardian that children could also be subject to these searches if they are deemed clearly necessary and proportionate.
Authorities say mobile phone searches will allow them to gather intelligence about asylum seekers’ journeys and arrest people smugglers. The powers come after the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act became law in December.
Borders Minister Alex Norris said: “We are introducing robust new laws with strong offenses to stop, disrupt and dismantle these vile gangs faster than ever before and disrupt their supply chains.”
On Sunday the prime minister said Britain would start to see “evidence” of asylum hotel closures in the coming months.
Starmer told the BBC’s program with Laura Kuenssberg on Sunday: “I said to the system, to the relevant ministries, I want this to be brought forward as soon as possible, but it is not the end of parliament anymore. Bring it forward.”
“I want us to close the hotels. I think you’ll see evidence of that in the coming months.”
The Home Office plans to send the first group of refugees to a military site in East Sussex within weeks, the Guardian has revealed.
A total of 41,472 migrants arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel in 2025; this is the second highest annual figure in history.
The annual total was 13% higher than in 2024, when 36,816 migrants made the journey, and 41% higher than in 2023, when the total was 29,437 migrants. This was 9% below the 2022 all-time high of 45,774.
Opinion polls show Reform significantly ahead of Labor, with the More in Common poll suggesting the party will win 381 seats.
