What lies in Home Secretary Yvette Cooper's in-tray?

The newly appointed Home Secretary will have many obstacles to overcome as soon as she begins her new role.

As the new leader of the Home Office, Yvette Cooper will aim to start quickly as she takes over the important role that includes handling immigration, crime, security, and policing. Cooper is the fifth person to lead this department since the last election.

With experience as the Labour Party's shadow home secretary and previous chair of the Commons Home Affairs Committee, Ms. Cooper is skilled at holding the government department responsible for its actions.

However, it might not be until she enters the Marsham Street office that she fully understands the immense size of the challenge in front of her.

Looking at new ways to stop migrant Channel crossings is likely the main priority for Ms Cooper, as her party has been demanding immediate policy reforms.

Similarly, it is important to consider abandoning the proposal to relocate asylum seekers to Rwanda, a commitment that Labour promised to revoke immediately upon taking office.

It is still uncertain how easy it will be to take apart in reality.

Up to now in 2021, 13,574 individuals have reached the UK by crossing the Channel, based on the most recent data from the Home Office.

This is a new record for the initial half of a calendar year.

It is also 19% more than the number reported at this time last year (11,433) and 5% higher than the same period in 2022 (12,900), based on analysis of government data by the PA news agency.

During the time Rishi Sunak has been the prime minister, there have been a total of 50,637 crossings.

Over 3,000 people came during the campaign, where immigration was a main focus. This happened after the General Election was announced on May 22nd, with a total of 3,692 arrivals.

Over the past six and a half years, during the migrant crisis, 127,919 individuals have reached the UK by crossing the Channel, according to data collected since the beginning of 2018.

Over 80,000 people have traveled since the last administration made a deal to transfer migrants to Rwanda in April 2022.

Furthermore, a total of 6,907 migrants have entered the country since the Safety of Rwanda Act was approved earlier this year on April 25. This Act was aimed at allowing deportation flights to begin.

The Labour party's manifesto pledged to redirect funds from the abandoned Rwanda plan towards funding a new security border command. This initiative aims to address the risks associated with perilous journeys by implementing a team of "hundreds of new specialist investigators" and utilizing counter-terror measures to dismantle criminal boat gangs.

The party plans to tackle the "hopeless" backlog of asylum cases by hiring additional caseworkers to speed up the processing of claims. They also aim to address the high cost of housing asylum seekers in hotels while they wait for a decision.

There are still doubts about whether the Labour party will bring back the rights for migrants to claim asylum on their journey.

Additionally, the government is looking to increase the number of agreements for migrants to return to their home countries and ramp up the number of deportations for those deemed to be in the UK unlawfully. This has been a priority for ministers and officials following the UK's exit from the European Union.

The statement also promised to decrease the amount of legal immigration, but did not specify a goal or give detailed plans on how this would be done.

Currently, there is a significant lack of trust in the police force due to numerous scandals involving officer behavior. The ongoing discussions about how law enforcement handles protests, such as those related to conflicts in Gaza or organized by climate change activists, have caused tensions between politicians and police leaders.

Labour made a commitment to improve safety in our communities by increasing the presence of police officers and addressing antisocial behavior in its manifesto.

The party aims to reduce knife crime and violence against women and girls by 50% over the next ten years, while also increasing trust in the police and criminal justice system to its highest levels.

Ms. Cooper will need to figure out how to make these promises happen.

One ongoing issue at the Home Office is the necessity to make adjustments following the Windrush controversy and their continued effort to make sure those affected receive proper restitution.

One evaluation noted that the department could face a problem similar to the Windrush scandal if it doesn't implement the necessary cultural changes.