Mr Naor-Hilton said: “This Anti-Refugee Bill 2 is simply more cruel and unworkable hot air from the Government. It won’t work any better than the previous Anti-Refugee Bill.

“Its impact will be to cause misery to people coming to the UK in search of protection, cost millions to the UK taxpayer and drive desperate people to take ever more dangerous journeys as there is no other way for them to claim asylum.”

He added: “Deterrence will never work because a tiny minority of people fleeing war and persecution from around the world will always need the UK to be a place to seek safety. Many have powerful reasons to want to come here that we can all understand – they have family or friends, or community here. The Home Office’s own research has backed this up.”

There is a divide in the UK over how many or whether to accept those who come from small boats. Critics of a tolerant policy say some who cross are economic migrants, those who travel from one country to another to improve their standard of living rather, rather than those genuinely fleeing asylum.

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Furthermore, opponents of crossings being used to migrate have repeatedly asked why the newcomers don’t stop in other safe countries such as France or Italy if they truly are refugees as opposed to economic migrants.

In 2021, Conservative MP Jonathan Gullis asked that question to then Zoe Gardner, then Policy and Advocacy Manager for the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants.

In response to his question, she said: “Most people stop as soon as they feel safe, but the people making their way to England and who specifically wish who come to the UK do so because they have ties to this country because they either have served with our military…or have family members [here] or speak the language because of our colonial history and have other ties of kinship and history here.”

She added: “So there are people who have legitimate ties to the UK and there is no good reason why they should particularly have their claims assessed in France if they do not wish to.

“It doesn’t really work for us to say to the French that given that we’re geographically located slightly to the west of you none of these refugees are our responsibility and they’re all on you because France can say the same thing and then Italy can say the same thing, and then the entire international refugee protection system will crumble. [sic]”

While Ms Gardner’s comments were made in 2021, they remain pertinent as Sunak seeks to fulfil his pledge of stopping small boat crossings in 2023.

However, there are questions over whether this legislation will allow him to put a stop to the crossings after the government failed to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda to have their claims processed.

Speaking to Times Radio, ex-permanent secretary of the Home Office, Sir David Normington, said: “I really don’t see how the prime minister’s objectives are going to be achieved.

“Obviously, he’s going to pass some legislation first, and there may be more to it than we have heard. But unless you manage the system properly, the legislation will be ineffective.”

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The full details of the legislation are set to be published on Tuesday before the Bill, provisionally titled the illegal migration bill, begins to make its way through Parliament.

It is believed the government has worked out a way to get around elements of the European Convention on Human Rights. The Mail On Sunday reported that a clause in the bill will apply a “rights brake”. However, there are no details on how this gets around the UK’s obligation under the ECHR.

Furthermore, there are questions on what the government will do if the new laws are passed and whether it will create routes that will enable those who wish to seek asylum to come to the UK legally.

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