Patel pledges to face down ‘Leftie’ lawyers who oppose ‘firm and fair’ asylum reforms

PRITI PATEL has attacked the “dogooders” and “Leftie lawyers” who play and profit from the UK’S “broken” asylum system at the expense of the most vulnerable.

Reaffirming her plans to shake up asylum, the Home Secretary turned on those opposing her proposed reform for lecturing ministers with “their grand theories about human rights” and “defending the indefensible”.

Speaking at the Tories’ virtual conference, she said she was prepared to face down her critics on social media and singled out Alastair Campbell, Tony Blair’s former official spokesman, who had mocked her accent.

“As Conservatives, we do not measure the depth of our compassion in 280 characters on Twitter, but in the actions we take and the choices we make,” she said.

Ms Patel confirmed plans, revealed last week in The Daily Telegraph, to refuse asylum to migrants who arrive in the UK illegally, unless there is good reason to consider their cases, and stop those applying for asylum from making “endless” appeals if rejected.

“I will introduce a new system that is firm and fair,” she said. “Fair and compassionate towards those who need our help … but firm because we will stop the abuse of the system.” In recent weeks, attempts to remove Channel migrants to “safe” European countries where they should have claimed asylum on arrival have been thwarted by legal challenges.

Turning on those lawyers, she said: “We will make more immediate returns of those who come here illegally and break our rules … and no doubt those who are well-rehearsed in how to play and profit from the broken system will lecture us on their grand theories about human rights.

“As for those defending the broken system – the traffickers, the do gooders, Leftie lawyers, the Labour Party – they are defending the indefensible.”