The House of Lords has successfully opposed a further seven measures in the Illegal Migration bill.

Peers voted to limit the time children and pregnant women arriving by illegal means can be held in detention. They backed a move to retain the existing limits of detention for unaccompanied children, 24 hours, or 72 hours for accompanied children, who can be held for one week with ministerial approval.

The Lords also voted to keep the limit of 72 hours’ detention for pregnant women.

Liz Sugg, a former Conservative foreign minister, said: “It impacts just a small number of women, but will have a big impact on those women’s health and their futures.”

The peers voted to back the courts’ role in deciding what constitutes a reasonable period of immigration detention, rather than allowing the government judicial oversight.

The Lords also voted to lower the threshold of harm a person must be expected to suffer when removed to a third country. And they supported cutting a section of the bill that would ban a court of tribunal from halting someone’s removal to a third country.

Finally, the Lords voted to prevent LGBTQ+ people from being deported to a country where they would have a well-founded fear of persecution.

A period of legislative ping-pong is now expected, with MPs overturning the Lords’ votes, before the bill returns to the Lords for further scrutiny.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jul/03/defeats-for-small-boats-bill-in-house-of-lords-as-channel-crossings-set-new-record