The United Kingdom (UK) government plans to not grant asylum to people convicted of sex crimes, the UK Home Office website said in a statement.
Sex offenders who pose a threat to the UK society should not benefit from the UK’s refugee protection scheme. The UK will tighten the law to ensure these crimes are taken seriously, said Home Secretary Yvette Cooper.
The new measures are needed to protect women and children from sexual exploitation, the UK Home Office explained. Between 1997 and 2013, nearly 1,400 children were sexually abused, with the majority of these crimes committed by people from Pakistan, the BBC reports.
Currently, the UK’s asylum policy is based on the Refugee Convention, which prohibits the granting of asylum for terrorists, war criminals, and those convicted of particularly grave crimes. The UK considers any crime punishable by a minimum of one year in prison to be particularly grave.
The proposed changes to the law will specifically allow for the denial of asylum for people convicted of sex crimes. Each case is expected to be considered on a case-by-case basis, and the authorities will assess the gravity of the crime and its potential danger to UK residents.