WORLD WORLDWIDE EUROPE uk United Kingdom - STATEWATCH - issue 25/10 - 28 March

 

issue 25/10 28 March

welcome Dear Statewatcher, The UK home secretary, Shabana Mahmood, was in the press earlier this week, warning of the need to combat “dark forces stirring up anger” over immigration. Her plan? A swathe of new, hard-line asylum and deportation policies that suggest she has embraced the very “dark forces” she is warning about. The proposals were enthusiastically welcomed by the UK’s two main far-right figureheads, Tommy Robinson and Nigel Farage. Amongst the proposed policies are: the removal of permanent refugee status, with individuals’ status reassessed every 30 months; no automatic right to family reunion; no automatic support for destitute asylum-seekers; and the potential seizure of assets from refugees to “contribute to the cost of their support.” There has been no decrease in the forces pushing people to leave their homes in search of safety. Officials are no doubt aware of this – after all, weapons sold with government approval are part of the problem. The government could make the investment needed to create a functioning asylum system. They could take a principled stand to support the rights of refugees. They could stop using some of the most vulnerable people in society as public punching bags. Instead, they refuse to make it possible to significantly increase public spending – which would require challenging wealthy, vested interests – and have chosen to ape the far-right, allegedly in the name of fighting them. When those in power warn of “dark forces” stirring up hatred and division, they often need look no further than themselves and their colleagues. Help us to monitor, report on and analyse these dangerous proposals - support our work with a donation.

make a donation in EUR >> make a donation GBP >> news Exporting carceral migration “management”: €30 million from the EU to Senegal for migration control €30 million from the EU's aid budget has been provided to Senegal for migration control. An examination of European Commission documents makes clear the main focus of the funding: border surveillance and control, maritime interception of people trying to leave Senegal to travel to European territory, and reception/detention infrastructure. read more >> Document: Drones - internal security implications A document circulated by the Danish presidency of the Council of the EU on 11 November sets out internal security issues raised by the use of drones, and outlines measures being put in place by the EU to try to address the problem. The aim is to prepare a discussion due to take place at the Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting in December. read more >> US searching for “security threats” in European data: not a problem for EU member states US law enforcement authorities want direct access to EU member state police and immigration databases to identify people considered “a threat to US security.” They may also be seeking access to EU databases. Some member states have concerns over timing, the legal basis and data protection requirements, according to a document obtained by Statewatch – but none have any fundamental problems with the proposal. read more >>

what we're watching This is our bi-weekly round up of all the important news, events, and resources we've come across over the last two weeks. Find this resource useful? If so, please consider making a donation to support us.

events Challenging Germany's unlawful border controls, racial profiling and violence at the border 26 November 2025, Strasbourg/online: The German federal police have automatically denied entry to over 40.000 individuals since September 2024, people who are hastily and automatically turned back irrespective of their documents, protection needs or any other rights. This press conference will explore ways to accountability with first-hand experience from a complainant. Read more borders and frontiers Lithuanian universities protest surprise Migration Department checks on foreign students Several Lithuanian universities are protesting unannounced inspections by the Migration Department, saying that officers have entered lectures and dormitories without warning, requested documents from students and staff, and recorded video during the checks – actions academics argue disrupt teaching and undermine university autonomy. Read more   UK government announces harsh new asylum policy The Home Secretary describes them as "the most sweeping asylum reforms in modern times." This is the official document setting out the proposed reforms. Read more New study on the early history of the International Centre for Migration Policy Development To gain a deeper understanding of the activities, role, and importance of the ICMPD today, it is crucial to look at how the organization emerged and developed in its early years. The political and institutional decisions and developments during this formative phase (1993–2004) continue to shape the ICMPD’s work and relevance today. Read more Profiting From People: Inside the UK's Asylum Hotels A new report exposes the true horrors that refugees face whilst housed for years on end in asylum hotels, based on work with hundreds of people living in hotels. Read more Spanish government funds two migrant detention centres in Mauritania Spain's government has opened two migrant prisons in Mauritania. Both detention centers were built by the Spanish agency FIAP, part of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and include space and even cribs for detaining migrant children. Read more coercion and control Turkey: Prosecutors seek up to 2,430 years in prison for jailed İstanbul mayor Turkish prosecutors have filed a long-awaited indictment of İstanbul’s jailed mayor, Ekrem İmamoğlu, accusing him of leading a vast criminal network and committing 142 offenses that could result in a sentence of up to 2,430 years in prison. Read more Hungarian Pride organiser could face criminal charges and prison sentence The organiser of Pécs Pride, the only Hungarian LGBTQ+ Pride event outside of Budapest, could face criminal charges for defying the country’s ban on Pride. Read more European Parliament pledges to tackle transnational repression against human rights defenders The European Parliament has adopted a resolution urging member states to confront efforts by authoritarian regimes to coerce, control or silence political opponents and dissidents living in Europe. Read more Serbia praises "very good cooperation with UK in field of security, internal affairs" A brief media release by the Serbian government praises cooperation with the UK, "especially on issues of combating irregular migration and human smuggling." Further activity is forthcoming, in "the framework of the existing memorandum on enhanced cooperation in the fight against organised immigration crime." Read more Trump administration labels European anti-fascist groups as terrorists: implications for US organisations In a major policy shift on November 13 2025, the U.S. State Department announced that it will designate four European far-left groups, widely associated with the antifa movement, as Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs) and proceed to list them as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) as of November 20. Read more crime and collusion Europe looks in the wrong place when debating Israeli research funding The genocide and apartheid in Palestine have not stopped, and the EU still pays the bills for Israel. Yiorgos Vassalos recalls in EUobserver that after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Commission was swift in reacting and terminating research cooperation. Read more discrimination, racism and fascism German visa system discriminates against the poor A study of waiting times for visa appointments at German embassies finds that "the poorer the country a diplomatic mission is based in, the longer the wait time and the lower the chances of finding an available appointment." Read more Exposed: The dirty campaign to paint Muslim MPs as anti-British In this article we examine one such term that has recently emerged in the British political lexicon: the word “sectarian”. It is not a new word - but it has been directed towards a new target. It’s being used to stigmatise British Muslim politicians. Read more ‘They’re not wolves – they’re sheep’: the psychiatrist who spent decades meeting and studying lone-actor mass killers From Port Arthur to Hoddle Street, Paul E Mullen has had a front-row seat to the men behind some of the worst public massacres. He says it’s possible to ‘disrupt the script’ for future violence. Read more Romani activists fear collective punishment & discrimination as Slovenia passes new ‘security’ bill Of chief concern in the new bill is the measure which gives police the power to enter homes and cars without warrants and to conduct raids on neighbourhoods suspected of engaging in criminality. Read more UK: Met police’s culture makes racial harm ‘inevitable’, internal review finds The “racial harm” the Metropolitan police inflicts on black people is “institutionally defended”, with its leadership and culture protecting the force from real change, an internal review has found. Read more Northern Ireland: Children rescued after fire at asylum accommodation 'started deliberately' Gardaí (Irish police) are investigating attempted arson after four children, including a baby, were rescued following a fire at a building housing people applying for international protection. Read more UK: Arrests made after pro-Palestine activists attacked across Surrey Police are investigating multiple assaults on demonstrators at pro-Palestine protests in Surrey, amid growing concerns about rising tensions and increasingly aggressive behaviour at local demonstrations. Read more How Britain's far right learned to love Israel Parties and movements that once reviled Israel for antisemitic reasons, and sometimes even expressed solidarity with Palestinians, now appear increasingly supportive of Israel. Read more resistance and solidarity Ireland: Civil liberties group launches survey of arrested protesters The survey asks respondents to share information about when and where they were arrested, what type of protest they were arrested at and what reason was given for their arrest, in addition to details about any use of force to effect their arrest. Read more surveillance and snooping Turkey ramps up surveillance of its citizens – with a hand from Brussels A Turkish firm which has been backed by EU research funds is supplying facial recognition equipment to Ankara. The company’s controlling shareholder is Chinese tech giant ZTE, classified by Brussels as a “high-risk” supplier. As concerns grow over rising repression in Turkey, experts say more must be done to monitor how European funds could be fuelling authoritarianism outside the bloc. Read more Hungry for data: Inside Europol’s secretive AI programme The EU’s law enforcement agency has been quietly amassing data to feed an ambitious but secretive artificial intelligence development programme that could have far-reaching privacy implications for people across the bloc Read more UK: Ofcom is monitoring VPNs following Online Safety Act. Here's how The UK's communications regulator is monitoring the use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), tools to protect privacy and anonymity online. The report revealing this fact there's no way for the public to know whether the data provider is a company with a track record of protecting people’s privacy, or one known to use invasive surveillance techniques." Read more war and peace Whose Boys? The Polish Exhibition ‘Our Boys’ Reopens Old WWII Wounds Thousands of Poles have a grandfather who was forcibly conscripted into the Wehrmacht. Polish politicians are still not ready to properly examine the vexed historical issue, while President Nawrocki seems more intent on arguing with Berlin over reparations. Read more The Nord Stream riddle: echoes of mistrust ripple through Europe Three years after the blast that took Nord Stream 2 and its predecessor Nord Stream 1 out of commission, the ill-fated project is again causing sharp divisions among European allies after Poland refused to extradite a prime suspect in the explosion to Germany earlier this month. Read more ­

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