Gavin Grey: UK correspondent on the UK threating 'Trump-style' visa ban in bid to address immigration concerns

Over in the UK, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood plans to impose visa bans on three African countries if they fail to take back their illegal migrants.

Angola, Namibia and the Democratic Republic of Congo face visa sanctions set to block tourists, VIPs and business officials from travelling to Britain if they don't co-operate.

UK correspondent Gavin Grey says the Government is hoping to reassure voters it can be tough on migration amid concerns from the opposition. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Given Gray are UK you correspondent with us this evening, Given,
good evening, Good morning to you.

Speaker 2 (00:04):
Hi.

Speaker 1 (00:05):
Now you've got a bigger, big announcement coming from the
Home Secretary.

Speaker 2 (00:10):
Yeah, and do you know what this has been so
widely leaked Ryan as I'm beginning to think we've seen
the whole thing already. But yeah, we're waiting now from
the Home Secretary the latest details of a plan to
make asylum seekers a much sort of stricter system of
how they're managed here in the UK. We're now finding
out that the Home Secretary plans for impose what are

(00:31):
being called Trump style visa bans on three African countries.
In other words, if Angola, Namibia, and the Democratic Republic
of Congo do not start to take back illegal migrants
from the UK who are being deported, then they will
face sanctions blocking their tourists, VIPs and business people from

(00:52):
traveling to Britain. Now, in the past, this is something
that Donald Trump has done in order to force countries
to accept illegals from those kind and the UK and
the past has just gone, oh well you're not accepting
them back where you should accept them back? Ah, well,
there's still here sort of thing. So now this is
a sign that this announcement that we're expecting a little
later today is going to be much much more far

(01:14):
reaching than we thought. We now hear that people will
have to be an asylum seeker for twenty years before
they granted asylum. It currently stands a permanent residency rather
it currently stands at five years. And this is all
part of this government showing that it is tough on
illegal migration and it is doing something about it. They
are absolutely on the floor in the opinion polls, and

(01:37):
no doubt now it looks like asylum is going to
be one of the big features in the opinion polls
for any future election.

Speaker 1 (01:43):
Kevin House and Sea, can you look saying all of
this when you've just you know, for the last I
saw it? Andrew with Stam a few weeks the beshing
Faraj is a racist for raising the issue and here
they are banning, yes, you know, restrictions on ngola.

Speaker 2 (01:58):
Yeah, and here they are doing it exactly the sorts
of things he was saying that we should be doing.
It's very very odd, but I think it shows the
political fever that we're in at the moment on this topic.

Speaker 1 (02:08):
Absolutely now Sarah Ferguson, former Duchess, head a children's book
and scandal comes along, book gets delayed. What's happening now, Well.

Speaker 2 (02:18):
It looks like it's been withdrawn from sale all together
at the moment that we're still waiting actually to hear
from the publisher, who's not responded to any requests for comment.
So Sarah Ferguson's new book called Flora and Fern Kindness
along the Way, initially due to be published on the
ninth of October. Then it was put back and Amazon
said it would be available from the twentieth of November,

(02:40):
so a couple of days time. But it's now no
longer listed on the website at all, and there are
no plans as yet. It was said to reinstate a
new deadline for it to be released, as I said,
the publisher, New Frontier Publishing, not responding to requests for comment.
Sixty six year old Sarah Ferguson, who of course lost
her title as Duchess when her ex husband Andrew mount

(03:03):
Batman winsor relinquished his use of the Duke of York title,
and now sort of stands with it with a career
that has done quite well in children's books, but sort
of now stands on a precipice. Will she ever be
able to publish again or are the publishers Are the
book world people just saying no, you're tainted goods, we
won't have you at all. Either way, it's been a

(03:24):
nice earner for her in the past, and one wonders
how she's going to make that up in future.

Speaker 1 (03:28):
That's interesting. I was as you were talking, thinking, why
would anyone buy a children's book from Fugi. You know,
of all the role models for your children, is that
what you'd point your finger? I don't know, but you
said she's done them before and they've sold.

Speaker 2 (03:41):
Yeah, they have, But that was, of course before all
this scandal broke, and of course, you know, being tainted
with that, it may make a big impact on her career.

Speaker 1 (03:48):
Budgie the Little Helicopter, I'm told is one of her
books that she's yes, yes, all right. Germany's coalition government
agreed to a new military service plan. This is to
boost troop numbers after Ring.

Speaker 2 (04:02):
Yeah, a huge amount of talk and wrangling about this,
and of course it comes with sensitivity that Germany should
have such a strong army after the World wars of
the last century. Nevertheless, it's finally got the go ahead.
Now the current number of troops is one hundred and
eighty two thousand. It wants to start military service, so
the sudden forcing of young men it's focusing on at

(04:24):
the moment to join the army for a short period
of time as a conscription type thing, and eventually it
could possibly be an army of roughly almost half a million.
That's using two hundred thousand reservists, but they want to
get the regular army up to somewhere over two hundred
and sixty thousand over the next ten years, so they're

(04:44):
doing it in stages. At the moment, the new military
service plan will make it compulsory for all eighteen year
old men to fill out a questionnaire on their suitability
to serve, but then from twenty twenty seven to undergo
medical screening and then in the future to effectively force
those people to join. Slightly different rules for young women

(05:05):
at the moment, but it's certainly a focus. From next year,
all eighteen year old men and women going to be
sent a questionnaire and willingness asked about their willingness to
join the armed forces, and it will be compulsory for
men and voluntary for women. Yeah, big, big questions about
German's defense operation with it being such a low payer

(05:26):
INTNATO in the past, something that has really caught Donald
Trump's eye.

Speaker 1 (05:30):
And are interesting. Thanks so much, Gavin. Gavin Gray are
UK correspondent.

Speaker 2 (05:35):
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