Shabana Mahmood is under mounting pressure to provide clarity and compassion after confirming that only a ‘few hundred’ asylum seekers will initially be admitted under the UK’s newly-announced ‘safe and legal’ routes. The home secretary has paired these routes with strict measures, copying Danish policies, aimed at deterring illegal crossings, including asset confiscation and the enforced removal of families who decline financial incentives to return home. Critics - including Labour MPs, refugee advocates, and UNHCR - argue that such limited pathways will do little to reduce dangerous Channel crossings or support those fleeing war and persecution. Organisations warn that people cannot afford to wait years for routes to expand, and that uncertainty will only deepen despair. Additionally, proposals to withdraw financial support from families with denied claims have sparked moral outrage, particularly over their impact on children. As the Government seeks to reshape asylum policy, many insist that protection, dignity, and fair family reunification remain essential to any credible system.