𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Shabana Mahmood has vowed to boot out grooming gang monster Shabir Ahmed after closing a staggering loophole that allowed him to dodge deportation. The Home Secretary hinted she is willing to impose visa sanctions on Pakistan if Islamabad does not take the predator back.

The Pakistani government has refused to take back the paedophile under any circumstances, prompting widespread anger. Ahmed, who targeted girls as young as 12, has hidden behind a 50-year-old protecting Commonwealth citizens who arrived before 1973.

Ahmed, 73, was released from prison after serving 14 years of a 22-year sentence for 30 child rape offences.

But under Labour’s proposed changes, foreign criminals will barred from the arcane protection given to Commonwealth citizens when they are guilty of certain types of serious and organised crime – such as human trafficking, child sexual exploitation, war crimes or posing a national security threat.

The Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: “In response to the widely reported case of the vile grooming gang leader, Shabir Ahmed, our amendment will provide the Home Secretary with a new power to disapply Section 7 of the Immigration Act 1971 for serious criminals.

“This provides protections for long-term UK residents but, clearly, should not be acting as a bar against removal in cases like that of Shabir Ahmed. It is important to note this does not guarantee his removal from this country. The Foreign Secretary and I continue to explore all avenues to pursue a deportation.”

Home Office sources have admitted it’s unlikely many people will be impacted by the changes.

Burnham told not to bow to left-wing backbenchers

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman admitted changing the law was only the first step in deporting Ahmed, saying: “The country of origin must agree to take these vile criminals back and that’s why we’re working across government to explore every option in this case.”

Asked if that included the possibility of refusing to issue visas, the spokesman said: “I think we’ve been clear that all options remain on the table where countries don’t co-operate on the return of their nationals.”

An extraordinary diplomatic stand-off has emerged after Pakistan demanded the extradition of two political dissidents from the UK in exchange for accepting the return of Ahmed. It wants Shahzad Akbar, a member of the former prime minister Imran Khan’s cabinet, and Adil Raja, a Pakistani journalist and former military officer, to be handed over for alleged “fake news” and anti-state propaganda.

Ahmed was one of nine men from Rochdale and Oldham found guilty of exploiting girls as young as 12 at two takeaway restaurants. After leaving prison, Ahmed was sent to 24-hour staffed accommodation and fitted with a GPS electronically monitored tag.

It comes as Labour – and Andy Burnham – faced the threat of mutiny over Ms Mahmood’s asylum reforms. Some Labours were expected to abstain in the vote on the Immigration and Asylum Bill.

Labour’s Immigration and Asylum Bill will make it harder for foreign criminals and rejected asylum seekers to use human rights laws to block their removal; streamline the appeals system; force migrants to repay the costs of their accommodation; and enable fast-track deportations.

Chris Philp MP, Shadow Home Secretary, said: “This is a real test of Andy Burnham. Will he vote for our proposal to make the tough changes needed to protect our borders, or will he back his left-wing MPs who what to further weaken what is already an inadequate Bill? There are some small improvements in this legislation but it falls far short of what is needed to secure our borders and remove those with no right to be in our country. That’s why we have proposed such radical changes.

“Unless Burnham can face down his own backbenchers and toughen up these measures he will fail just as badly as Keir Starmer.”

‘Labour MPs are simply too dense to know what they are doing’

And there are growing fears Andy Burnham – who is set to become Prime Minister next week – could “hand the reins of power to left-wing MPs. Ms Mahmood has drawn up a compromise offer to appease MPs who are concerned about 1.6 million migrants being made to wait longer for settlement rights.

Labour politicians are linking the two policies, even though they were not voting on the proposed changes to indefinite leave to remain on Monday night. While Mr Burnham’s allies suggested the Makerfield MP “believes the public deserve an asylum system that is both compassionate and credible”, critics warned watering down Ms Mahmood’s ILR proposals could bankrupt Britain.

Under the current plans, migrants will be told to wait at least 10 years before they can apply for settlement rights – double the current threshold of five years. But the record number of arrivals who arrived between 2021 and 2024 could be allowed to apply after five years, in a compromise drawn up by the Home Office.

Reform’s Zia Yusuf blasted: “The ‘Boriswave’ was one of the most appalling acts of vandalism ever inflicted on the British people by its own government.

“The Tories imported millions of unskilled migrants from third world countries in the blink of an eye. Half of them do not work and never will. This Boriswave will cost the taxpayer £622 billion over their lifetimes, that’s £20,000 for every household in Britain.

“Shabana Mahmood, the Labour Home Secretary, has the opportunity to at least unwind some of this vandalism. She knows the cost of failing to act could be the bankruptcy of Britain. That’s why she drew up plans to extend the time they’d need to wait to get Indefinite Leave to Remain to 10 years.

“Now it turns out she is nothing more than a subversive career politician willing to sacrifice the British people’s future for her own political future. Burnham has handed the reins of power to the Labour backbench MPs.

“These people want open borders as they see every unskilled migrant as a future voter. I want to be crystal clear. Firstly: many Labour MPs are simply too dense to know what they are doing. That’s why most have never done anything other than Labour politics in their life. Mahmood is knowingly selling out her country out of naked ambition.”