A “dangerous and hugely irresponsible” plan by the Welsh Government to give young asylum seekers cash to fight deportation has been swiftly blocked by Wales’ senior MP.
Labour ministers in Cardiff Bay wanted to hand out £1,600 a month guaranteed income to young migrants on top of their legal aid.
But Monmouth MP David Davies – who was appointed Welsh Secretary last October - rejected the move, stating it was not a priority of the people of Wales.
He instead accused the Labour-run Welsh Government of “incentivising” illegal migrants to risk their lives by crossing the English Channel in exchange for taxpayers’ money.
“It is wrong, dangerous and hugely irresponsible, which is why I jointly signed a letter rejecting what the Welsh Labour Government is asking for,” said Mr Davies.
Proposals would have allowed migrants who arrive in Wales unaccompanied as children to receive universal basic income from the age of 18, without it affecting legal aid assistance - meaning they would effectively be paid both living costs and lawyers’ fees to prevent them from being deported.
Mr Davies said: “We are not prepared to see the Welsh Labour Government handing out universal basic incomes to people who shouldn’t be in this country in the first place.
“And then on top of that, to provide them with legal funding and lawyers so they can challenge the decisions being made by the UK Government.
“These are not the priorities that the Welsh people have.”