Addressing the Commons today, Yvette Cooper promised the government will overhaul the asylum system. This will include changing the way the appeals system works for asylum claims and the suspension of new family reunion applications. The Home Secretary’s remarks coincide with figures that show the overall number of successful applications for family reunion visas has surged by five times in the last three years.

Cooper also hinted that there may be changes to how the ECHR is interpreted. She suggested that Article 8 (the right to respect for private and family life, which has been used to help block deportations) may be interpreted differently. The Home Secretary claimed that promises of family reunion had encouraged dangerous routes into the UK, before noting that interpretations of inte

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