Modern Studies Assignment - Illegal Immigration

After the UK left the European Union in 2020, net migration in the UK rose dramatically. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) the net migration peaked at 746,000 in 2022. Following Brexit, the UK lost a seat on the management board for Europol (the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation), which means that British officers will no longer be able to interrogate the Europol database. This has a huge knock-on effect on the UK’s efforts to dismantle immigrant smuggling networks. This means that while the UK may have more control over the flow of immigration to the country, it has lost beneficial access to the EU instruments in controlling the rising inflows from third-world countries. This could prove detrimental to the rise in illegal immigration, which has been seen to come from many making the perilous journey across the English Channel. On January first, 2025 the Home Office released figures showing 36,816 people crossed the channel on small boats in 2024 but this number is not as high as the statistics for 2022, according to the BBC over 45,000 boats crossed the English Channel in 2022. The crossing is dangerous for people on cramped, poorly crafted boats which are usually constructed by the people smuggling gangs who are out to make a profit. Some of those who cross the channel have even lost their lives on the journey, according to the figures given by France, 77 people are known to have died crossing the channel in 2024. This shows that the UK needs to solve its immigration problem.

Australia has introduced stricter measures on their border to cut immigration flow in half. This includes tighter visa rules for international students. This is part of a plan to crack down on non-genuine students who exploit student visas as a means of entry for work or permanent residency. This means stricter English-language minimum requirements for applicants. The government also increased the visa application fee in an attempt to deter many from applying for a visa. For example, according to Source A the international student visa application fee was doubled from $710 to $1600 in July 2024. This shows that Australia’s response to mass immigration has been effective because according to Source B, there has been a 49% decline in international student numbers between 2019 and 2023 and according to Source A, “four in 10 visas are now being refused.” So doubling visa application fees and tightening the rules around student visas deters those who want to exploit the system by extending their stay or using it for different purposes, violating the terms of their visas. Australia is effectively handling its illegal immigration by severely cutting back the amount of visas they accept.

Australia has had a system of ‘mandatory detention’ since 1992. This policy outlines that any people who arrive in Australia illegally are detained indefinitely. This means under the Migration Act 1958, any non-citizen who is in Australia without a valid visa must be detained. The act states these people may only be released from ‘immigration detention’ if they are granted a valid visa or removed from Australia. For example, according to Source C in January 2023 there were 1,061 people in immigration detention centres. This shows that Australia’s response to mass immigration has been effective because according to Source C over 50% of people in detention facilities have been detained for 366 days or more. So if on average people are only kept in these centers for a year and then are given a visa, granted asylum, or deported, the Australian authorities are getting to immigrant asylum claims as quickly as possible. 

Under the series of policies included in Operation Sovereign Borders, in 2013 Australia introduced the so-called “turnbacks” at sea. This is still in use today and people often view this approach as one of their most harsh immigration policies. This means that any unauthorized boats making a voyage to Australia (most likely carrying immigrants attempting to settle in Australia) are turned back to their country of origin.  This policy was effective in returning migrants and avoiding the dangerous journey to Australia. For example, according to Source D, just for nine months before March 2023 only 7 boats attempted to come to Australia. This shows that Australia’s response to illegal immigration has been effective because according to Source D, a spokesperson for the Australian Border Force said in the 5 years before Operation Sovereign Borders “approximately 50,000 people arrived in Australia on 820 boats and more than 1,200 people are known to have to have lost their lives at sea attempting to come to Australia.” Australia has made effective progress in decreasing the number of illegal immigrants arriving in their country under this programme, highlighting the successes of their policies.

The US has long struggled with illegal immigration. So in his first days in office, the new president Donald Trump has pushed through a series of executive orders that have begun overhauling segments of the immigration system. Trump promised “mass deportations”. This means that ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) has been mobilized to carry out mass arrests and detainments of suspected illegal immigrants who have been living undocumented in the country, it also means ICE can carry out raids. For example, according to Source E, on just the fourth day of Trump’s administration over 1,000 people were removed or deported according to ICE statistics. This shows that the USA’s solution to illegal immigration has been effective because of the government’s rapid response to begin processing illegal immigrants since Trump was inaugurated. It is unclear how many ICE raids have taken place, but according to Source E, on 26 January alone 956 people were arrested by ICE and other agencies. Showing the government swiftly following through on promises made by Trump during the campaign trail. According to Source E, in the fiscal year 2024, Biden deported 271,000 people to 192 countries. Showing these successes are not just unique to the Trump administration, Biden’s administration amounted to large numbers of deportations, and the US’s response to illegal immigration has long since been effective. However, even though Trump has been quick to implement these solutions to illegal immigration, the knock-on effects of his mass deportation plan could be an ‘economic disaster’ for the US. This means that because the US relies heavily on a low-cost workforce, the loss of migrant workers would trigger productivity losses which would have an impact on inflation and the US economy. For example, according to Source F, arresting and deporting just 1 million (out of an estimated 11-12 million) illegal migrants in the US could cost taxpayers about $20 billion. This shows that the government cannot solve illegal immigration effectively since it would cost Americans and the government immense amounts of money. According to Source F, the construction sector employs around 1.5 million undocumented workers, which is 13% of its total workforce, and according to Source H, congress doesn't have the resources to fund Trump’s mass deportation scheme. These expensive schemes could have damaging effects on the economy which can’t grow if the US loses a huge portion of the workforce.

The crossing of illegal immigrants into the US is primarily taking place at the US/Mexico border. The government deployed more troops to the southern border to help with the migration problem. This means troops will fly helicopters to help Border Patrol agents monitor the border while also helping in the construction of barriers to stop migrants from coming in. For example, according to Source E, on 22 January 2025, the Pentagon announced the deployment of 1500 active-duty troops to the southern border. This shows the USA’s solution to illegal immigration has been effective because according to Source E, Biden also deployed active-duty troops to the border which were used to assist Border Patrol with primarily administrative tasks ahead of the expiration of Title 42 a public health order that used to expel migrants quickly during Covid-19. So the 60% increase in army troops that were deployed in January 2025 would be effective in stemming the flow of illegal immigrants because according to Source E, border crossings significantly dropped in Biden’s final year as president. In December 2024 about 47,330 migrant apprehensions were recorded, down from a high of nearly 250,000 in December 2023. This increase in troops at the border is necessary because, according to Source G, 80% of Americans believe the US government is doing a bad job at dealing with a large number of migrants at the border. Further backing up the necessity for protection at the border. However, the expansion of ICE and the subsequent raids that have been carried out have raised fear over racial profiling. This means those who are getting caught in ICE raids are being targeted because of their race of skin. American citizens including those of Native tribal nations have been pulled into the huge immigration operations ordered by the government. For example, according to Source H, Navajo President Buu Nygren stated he had received accounts of  “negative and sometimes traumatizing” encounters between ICE and Navajo Nation citizens. This shows that the government’s response to illegal immigration is not effective because according to Source H, on 26 January almost half of the people arrested, 48% had nonviolent offenses on their record or were people who had not committed any offense. The government cannot do an effective job of solving illegal immigration if they are prosecuting innocent civilians and allowing prejudice to cloud their judgment. 

Since 2021 Poland has experienced a dramatic rise in immigration. The Polish government has suspected and accused Belarus and Russia of purposefully directing the flow of migrants toward the EU country in an attempt to destabilise the bloc. As a result, the Prime Minister, Donald Tusk announced his government’s plans to temporarily suspend the right to asylum. This means that Poland will have more control over its border, which means people smugglers and human traffickers will not be able to abuse the right to asylum according to Source J, “this right to asylum is used exactly against the essence of the right to asylum” For example, according to Source I, in August 2021 alone eight times as many people tried to cross the border illegally than had attempted to do so in the whole of 2020. This shows that Poland’s immigration problem has been increasing rapidly since the crisis began in 2021 and according to Source I, dozens are still attempting to cross the border daily. So temporarily suspending the right to asylum could help to significantly reduce this number. However, Poland will have a hard time pushing forward with this policy as the suspension of the right to asylum goes against international law. This means that under international law countries are obliged to offer people the right to claim asylum. This proposed law would also violate the binding obligations of EU member states under the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU to ensure the right to asylum. For example, according to Source J, in September 2024 the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights stated that Poland’s policy of returning migrants without assessing their potential claims “does not allow for full respect of international human rights standards” and this also “exposes them to the risk of serious violations of the rights protected by the European Convention on Human Rights.” This shows that Poland’s solution to illegal immigration is not effective as it breaches the human rights of immigrants. Many argue that Poland should be more welcoming and take a more compassionate approach towards immigrants coming into their country.

The most useful source was Source G because it is one of the most reputable and professional survey companies in the US. Pew Research uses reliable tested polling techniques and their results are trusted by many different organisations so they aim to produce accurate data to maintain their reputation. Another reason why Source G is the most useful source is because they used a survey of 5,140 adults. This is reliable because the survey is representative of a diverse population. 

However, Source H was less useful because it is an American news website. American news channels are allowed to be biased, but NBC News in particular has a left-leaning bias. This means they might omit information to make the opposite viewpoint look bad and highlight stories, opinions, and facts that make their chosen viewpoint more favorable to readers. Although Source H, was published on the 28 January 2025. This makes the source more reliable because it provides up-to-date information that is more likely to still be relevant to the issue it is discussing. 

Option 1 was the most convincing suggestion for decreasing the number of illegal immigrants to the UK. I didn’t recommend Option 2 because for the UK, the economic consequences of mass deportations would cause a much bigger strain on Britain than in the US and with the reports of racial discrimination this could cause problems for minorities in the UK. I didn’t recommend Option 3 because suspending the right to asylum has raised human rights concerns for immigrants trying to travel into Poland and there has been a lot of pushback from the international community due to these concerns. So I am reccomending Option 1. This is because they have made accessing a student visa more difficult means those who want to abuse their right to asylum or renew their visas are screened out for those who will contribute to the country. Australia’s detention centers are effective because the levels of migrants have decreased showing their immigration policies are successful in deterring illegal immigrants from staying within Australia. Australia's approach is favored by the public and those in government. While in the US many people believed the government was not doing a good job at protecting the border and in Poland, they are being condemned by the international community for a breach of human rights. Overall, since implementing the measures Australia’s immigration rates have gone down, I am recommending Option 1 - Australia’s solutions to illegal immigration as a possible solution the UK government can follow to solve its illegal immigration crisis.