THE SNP's shadow chancellor has launched a blistering attack on the UK Government's controversial asylum and immigration reforms which she insists must be scrapped.
Alison Thewliss warned the Tory-led Nationality and Borders Bill - which has now reached an amendments stage in the House of Commons after several debates - will be "deeply damaging" to the country.
Ministers have described the legislation as the "cornerstone of the Government's new plan for immigration, delivering the most comprehensive reform in decades to fix the broken asylum system".
But it has been slammed by critics and was heavily amended by peers in the House of Lords.
On Tuesday, MPs voted to reinstate proposals that would give the Government powers to strip people of their British citizenship without notice.
Peers had voted to remove this clause from the Bill, but the Commons voted 318 to 223, to disagree with the Lords.
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MPs also voted to reinstate to the Bill a move to treat asylum seekers differently based on how they enter the UK.
And they voted to reject Lords amendment seven, which had sought to allow asylum seekers to work if no decision had been taken on their claim after six months.
Lords amendment five, which aimed to ensure a section of the Bill complies with international protections for refugees, was also rejected by MPs by 313 votes to 231.
Three Conservative MPs - former ministers David Davis, Andrew Mitchell and Simon Hoare - rebelled against the government over plans for an offshore processing system for asylum seekers.
Thewliss said she was proud to be among those who opposed the "cruel" bill which she claims will allow Tories to shut out refugees.
“The Nationality and Borders Bill is deeply damaging to this country," said the Glasgow Central MP.
"Scotland takes pride in being a country that is open to refugees, but this new bill would make this all but impossible.
“Constituents all across Glasgow Central have contacted me to show their anger towards the bill, yet this Tory Government seem to care only about their narrow ideology rather than the views of refugees, asylum seekers, and those who wish to welcome them.
“I am proud to be amongst those who opposed this cruel bill and share my thanks to those constituents who wrote to me about it.
“Refugees in this country should be welcome, not shut out, but this bill would give the Tories the powers to do exactly that.
“I call on the UK Government again, not least in the face of the ongoing crises in Afghanistan and Ukraine, to scrap this cruel bill completely.”
The latest suggested location for an offshore processing system, Ascension Island, is a UK overseas territory over 4000 miles away.
But Home Office minister Tom Pursglove said it was "untrue" to suggest the island was an option.
Ghana, Rwanda, Albania and Denmark have all refused to host a UK processing centre.
The Government has argued the planned differentiation in the treatment of asylum seekers, depending on how they arrived in the country, was aimed at discouraging people from travelling to the UK other than via safe and legal routes.
The legislation will now return to the Lords for peers to examine again.
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