Suella Braverman hits back at Sir Elton John criticism of speech – as she brushes off claims she is aiming for Tory leadership

Published

2 years ago

September 27, 2023

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“Many people” pretend to be gay to claim asylum in the UK, Suella Braverman has claimed, as she defended herself from criticism from Sir Elton John.

The home secretary yesterday delivered a controversial speech in which she claimed the asylum system will break if people are given sanctuary for “simply being gay, or a woman, and fearful of discrimination in your country of origin”.

Her words were criticised by Sir Elton John and the Labour MPs Ben Bradshaw and Sir Chris Bryant, who are both gay.

Speaking to ITV News today, Ms Braverman said that “some people do game the system”.

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She said: “They come to the UK, they purport to be homosexual in the effort to game our system, in the effort to get special treatment.

“That’s not fair, and it’s not right.

“I’m afraid we do see many instances where people purport to be gay when they’re not actually gay. But in order to get special treatment, it’s not the way our asylum system should work.”

In a statement released through the Elton John Aids Foundation, the singer and his husband David Furnish said: “We are very concerned about the UK home secretary’s comments stating how discrimination for being gay or a woman should not be reason enough to qualify for protection under international refugee laws.

“Nearly a third of all nations class LGBTQ+ people as criminals, and homosexuality is still punishable by death in 11 countries.

“Dismissing the very real danger LGBTQ+ communities face risks further legitimising hate and violence against them.

“Leaders need to provide more compassion, support and acceptance for those seeking a safer future.”

Responding, Ms Braverman said: “Well, I have huge admiration for Elton John, but what I would say is that we need to be, again honest about what’s actually happening on the ground.

“And as I said in my speech, we need to be clear about what constitutes persecution – persecution is where people are being tortured, where they are receiving ill-treatment, where they are having their human rights violated in a monstrous and grotesque way.”

She added that “we want to welcome people fleeing persecution to the UK”.

“That’s not the same as discrimination, and I fully acknowledge that it is miserable and incredibly tough around parts of the world to be gay or to be a woman – being a victim of discrimination shouldn’t necessarily qualify you for asylum protection in the UK.”

Sky News has asked the Home Office for more details about Ms Braverman’s claim.

Sir Chris said: “How many? Where’s your evidence? And how dare you scurry behind the apron strings of prejudice to hide the fact that you’ve manifestly failed to deal with the asylum mess you and your party created.”

There had been suggestions Ms Braverman was using the trip – taking place less than a week before the Conservative Party conference – to raise her profile as a potential successor to Rishi Sunak. She unsuccessfully ran to lead the party after Boris Johnson resigned.

It is not the first time Ms Braverman has delivered a speech which might be more at home in a leadership race. The speech in the US was signed off in the usual way, according to Downing Street.

Should Mr Sunak lose the next general election, it is likely he will be challenged for leadership of the party.

Asked by the PA news agency if her speech on Tuesday was made with leadership ambitions in mind, the home secretary said: “With respect, that is a slightly flippant interpretation of what is a very serious issue.”

She was asked about her leadership ambitions yesterday by Sky’s Mark Stone, saying: “I’m incredibly honoured to be here at the [American Enterprise Institute].

“The AEI represents the forefront of thought leadership and policymaking in the US and actually internationally, and to be hosted here to talk about migration in the international context, followed by meetings with my American counterparts is really again, part of my day job part of my duty as home secretary, I want to lead this conversation globally.

“And I want to work with like-minded partners to find a solution.”

Ms Braverman also rejected claims she was lacking compassion following her speech, saying today: “No, I don’t think that is true.

“And what I would say is that we are facing unprecedented levels of illegal migration, not just in the UK but also in countries like the US and other Western or European nations.

“It’s right that we ask for greater collaboration at the international level among like-minded partners and, ultimately, the UK cannot sustain such levels of illegal migration, or indeed, legal migration.”

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And when it was put to her that reforming the UN Refugee Convention is an unrealistic goal, she said: “I am inviting my international partners to engage in an exercise of review and reform.

“Ultimately, I think it’s legitimate to ask these questions whether the definition of refugee in the international conventions is still fit for purpose, whether the definition of persecution has been stretched beyond a reasonable limit, and that’s in face of these high numbers that we are now seeing.”

Politics

PM issues warning to European leaders ahead of ECHR talks

Published

2 hours ago

December 10, 2025

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PM issues warning to European leaders ahead of ECHR talks

Sir Keir Starmer has called for a tougher approach to policing Europe’s borders ahead of a meeting between leaders to discuss a potential shake-up of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

The prime minister said the way in which the ECHR is interpreted in courts must be modernised, with critics long claiming the charter is a major barrier to deportations of illegal migrants.

His deputy, David Lammy, will today be in Strasbourg, France, with fellow European ministers to discuss reforms of how the agreement is interpreted in law across the continent.

In an opinion piece for The Guardian, Sir Keir and his Danish counterpart, Mette Frederiksen, said the change was necessary to prevent voters from turning to populist political opponents.

What’s the issue with the ECHR?

The ECHR, which is the foundation of Britain’s Human Rights Act, includes the right to family life in its Article 8.

That is often used as grounds to prevent deportations of illegal migrants from the UK.

There has also been a rise in cases where Article 3 rights, prohibiting torture, were used to halt deportations over claims migrants’ healthcare needs could not be met in their home country, according to the Home Office.

The Conservatives and Reform UK have both said they would leave the ECHR if in power, while the Labour government has insisted it will remain a member of the treaty.

But Sir Keir admitted in his joint op-ed that the “current asylum framework was created for another era”.

“In a world with mass mobility, yesterday’s answers do not work. We will always protect those fleeing war and terror – but the world has changed, and asylum systems must change with it,” the two prime ministers wrote, as they push for a “modernisation of the interpretation” of the ECHR.

What is happening today?

Mr Lammy is attending an informal summit of the Council of Europe.

He is expected to say: “We must strike a careful balance between individual rights and the public’s interest.

“The definition of ‘family life’ can’t be stretched to prevent the removal of people with no right to remain in the country [and] the threshold of ‘inhuman and degrading treatment’ must be constrained to the most serious issues.”

It is understood that a political declaration signed by the gathered ministers could carry enough weight to directly influence how the European Court of Human Rights interprets the treaty.

The UK government is expected to bring forward its own legislation to change how Article 8 is interpreted in UK courts, and is also considering a re-evaluation of the threshold for Article 3 rights.

The plans have been criticised by Amnesty International UK, which described them as weakening protections.

“Human rights were never meant to be optional or reserved for comfortable and secure times. They were designed to be a compass, our conscience, when the politics of fear and division try to steer us wrong,” Steve Valdez-Symonds, the organisation’s refugee and migrant rights programme director, said.

Sir Keir’s government has already adopted several hardline immigration measures – modelled on those introduced by Ms Federiksen’s Danish government – to decrease the number of migrants crossing the Channel via small boats.

Starmer-Macron deal ‘a sticking plaster’

Meanwhile, French far-right leader Jordan Bardella told The Daily Telegraph he would rewrite his country’s border policy to allow British patrol boats to push back small vessels carrying migrants into France’s waters if he were elected.

The National Rally leader called Sir Keir’s “one-in, one-out” agreement with Emmanuel Macron, which includes Britain returning illegal arrivals in exchange for accepting a matching number of legitimate asylum seekers, a “sticking plaster” and “smokescreen”.

He said that only a complete overhaul of French immigration policy would stop the Channel crossings.

Mr Bardella is currently leading in opinion polls to win the first round of France’s next presidential election, expected to happen in 2027, to replace Mr Macron.

Politics

Trump to begin interviews with Fed chair finalists this week: FT

Published

5 hours ago

December 10, 2025

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Trump to begin interviews with Fed chair finalists this week: FT

The race for the new US Federal Reserve chair is nearing the finish line, with US President Donald Trump reportedly set to begin interviewing finalists for the top job this week.

According to a report from the Financial Times on Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has presented a list of four names to the White House.

One of these is former Fed governor Kevin Warsh, whom Bessent is scheduled to meet with on Wednesday. Another is National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett, who is seen as the frontrunner for the role.

Another two names would be picked from a list of other finalists, which includes Fed governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman, and BlackRock chief investment officer Rick Rieder.

Trump and Bessent are expected to hold at least one interview next week, as a decision looks likely to be announced in January.

However, Trump has revealed he already has his eye on one particular candidate.

“We’re going to be looking at a couple different people, but I have a pretty good idea of who I want,” Trump said to journalists on Air Force One on Tuesday.

Kevin Hassett is a frontrunner for Fed chair role

The upcoming round of interviews suggests that Hassett may not be the clear lock in for the role as previously thought, though he is seen as the favorite.

Earlier this month, prediction market odds on Kalshi and Polymarket shot up for Hassett significantly following comments from Trump at the White House on Dec. 2.

While welcoming guests, Trump labeled Hassett as “potential Fed chair” leading many to assume the president had let a major hint slip.

With Hassett’s odds spiking to 85% after Trump’s comments last week, they have since declined to around 73% for Hassett, while Warsh’s odds sit at 13% on Kalshi at the time of writing, which has floated around this range over December.