A flagship Government Bill to stop asylum seekers making dangerous crossings over the Channel has been passed.

The Nationality and Borders Bill was voted through in Parliament yesterday (Wednesday) by 298 votes with 231 MPs opposing.

Home Secretary Priti Patel announced in a tweet: "I'm delighted that the #BordersBill, which will break the deadly business model of the people-smugglers, has passed in the House of Commons.

"It will deliver a new, firm but fair asylum system to deter illegal migration."

The Government says the Bill is to deter 'illegal' immigration by "speeding up the removal of failed asylum seekers and dangerous foreign criminals" and will introduce new maximum life sentences for people smugglers.

The Bill will also seek to stop 'illegal arrivals' gaining immediate entry into the asylum system if they have travelled through a safe county, and will increase the maximum sentence for 'illegally' entering the UK.

It will also establish powers to process asylum claims offshore for those who arrive via 'illegal routes.'

The Bill toughens the existing law forbidding someone facilitating the arrival or entry of an asylum seeker into the UK, or trying, for gain.

Now gain, which is hard to pin down because payment can be cash in hand or abroad, no longer has to be proved.

People from organisations rescuing people including asylum seekers at sea for no charge, such as the RNLI, will continue to be acting within the law.

Asylum seekers reaching Britain outside formal channels has been a thorny issue for decades.

For years the preferred tactic was by people coming into Britain hiding inside lorries but over the last three years the main trend has been to make dangerous sailings across the Channel in small boats. If they don't land on Kent beaches they are often rescued by the Border Force and brought to Dover interview and processing.

Between January 1 and November 22 this year more than 25,700 people were counted as making such a crossing, more than three times the number for all 2020.

This method came to sharp and tragic focus on November 24 when 27 people were drowned off Calais when their dinghy capsized.

It was the single biggest loss of life using this method.

Yet, asylum seekers have been undeterred and in fact 40 more people sailed across the English Channel the very next morning.

And just last Saturday another 100 had to be rescued from the sea in three separate incidents after their boats began to sink.

Hiding in lorries has also cost lives. A total 58 people were found dead in the back of a trick when it arrived in Dover in 2000, the single worst tragedy involving asylum seekers.

Ms Patel said: "Families and young children have lost their lives at sea and in lorries and containers because they put their trust in the people traffickers.

"The challenge is not unique to the UK, but we as a Government are seeking to address these issues in a responsible way, because they have been neglected for far too long.

“We will bring in tough new sentences—maximum life sentences—for people smugglers and facilitators.

"There will be new rules to stop unscrupulous people posing as children, and there will be stronger enforcement powers for Border Force.

"Those who travel through a safe country should claim asylum there, rather than asylum shopping." Priti Patel

"Importantly, those who travel through a safe country should claim asylum in that safe country, rather than asylum shopping in the way we see right now.

“Our Bill will bring in a new, comprehensive, fair but firm long-term plan that seeks to address the challenge of illegal migration head on. Illegal immigration is facilitated by serious organised criminals exploiting people and profiting from human misery."

Pro-asylum seeker groups have criticised the passing of the Bill.

Bridget Chapman, of Kent Refugee Action Network called it the Anti-Refugee Bill and said:"It will make an already terrible and dreadfully unfair system much worse.

" It will criminalise those simply looking for sanctuary because of the method of their arrival, and we are confident that there will be further chaos in the future as it will undoubtedly be challenged in court.

"We will keep pushing back and demanding a better system that treats refugees with humanity and decency."

A spokesman for Care4Calais said: "It will allow this government to ship asylum seekers to offshore sites for their asylum claims to be processed.

"These sites will be like Australia’s notorious offshore immigration detention centres in Papua New Guinea - shockingly inhumane, and unacceptably expensive.

"Time and time again, when you look at the Anti-Refugee Bill, the same things come out.

"It claims to to be fair, but it’s shockingly inhumane.

"It claims to fix a broken system but it will not work."

"It claims to fix a broken system but it cannot and will not work."

Phil Kerton, co-director of Seeking Sanctuary,' commented: "Thousands of people forced to flee their homes and in need of a safe haven will no longer be able to find safety and build new lives here.

" New regulations will prevent many refugees from reaching sanctuary, and make criminals of many who attempt to reach our territory.

"Refugees will be isolated in harmful institutions, as 70 years of international co-operation under the UN Refugee Convention is abruptly ended.

"This is a sad day for our nation and many politicians should feel shame for the incorrect facts and hostile language used to whip up support for their proposals."

Kay Marsh, of Samphire, said: "With hostility and a complete lack of compassion at its core, this Bill is anything but fair, as it was promised to be. This is a dark day for the UK immigration system."

"The entire Bill is legally and ethically questionable and will put so many innocent lives at further risk."

Damian Collins, MP for Folkestone and Hythe, and Dover MP Natalie Elphicke both supported the Bill.

Mr Collins said: "It will ensure that the UK has a firm, but fair, approach to immigration.

"It will create an effective asylum system that is fit for purpose; one where the public can be confident that asylum claims are based upon genuine need, where people traffickers are not allowed to exploit those seeking to claim asylum and most importantly, the new system will ensure that it is the most vulnerable people that are prioritised.

"For the first time, a person’s method of entry into the country will be considered as part of their asylum application and it will affect their status in the UK, should they be granted asylum.

"Contrary to what opponents of this sensible policy have said, it is fully in line with the UN Refugee Convention, which allows countries to differentiate between those seeking refuge from imminent peril, and those travelling via a safe third country."

Mrs Elphicke said: “This is a strong yet compassionate Bill that helps people in need of refuge and a safe haven and also strengthens our borders.

“Everyone in France seeking to cross the English Channel is already safe in France. That’s why I backed the measures in the bill that seek to discourage people from making these dangerous and illegal journeys across the Channel. We must do everything possible to avoid further tragedies in the English Channel this winter.

“It is clear migration is a global problem in need of a global solution. The Refugee Convention needs modernisation so it is fit for purpose. That’s why I’m calling for a COP 26 for refugees and migration, so we have an international agreement on a system that provides real and lasting places of safety where vulnerable people can truly rebuild their lives.”

The Home Office stresses that the Government still wants to help innocent people fleeing persecution but the system must be fair.

It adds that current appeals system is too slow. As of May 2020, 32% of asylum appeals lodged in 2019 did not have a known outcome.

It also says the asylum system now costs more than £1 billion a year to run.

The Home Office says that known illegal entry in 2020 was around 16,000 people. Yet the numbers with no right to be here being removed has been steadily declining for several years due to legal challenges.

As a result, there are now more than 10,000 Foreign National Offenders on the streets, posing a risk to the public.