Anneliese Dodds

Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities

Labour/Co-operative MP for Oxford East

@AnnelieseDodds

Asylum

The asylum system is intended to protect people fleeing persecution in their own countries. Parliament has voted on subjects including: routes via which people may enter the United Kingdom to seek asylum; the circumstances in which those seeking asylum may work; support for those seeking asylum and if to allow those claiming asylum to be removed to other countries while their claim is assessed.

Photo: Nathan Collins

Anneliese Dodds consistently voted against a stricter asylum system

TheyWorkForYou has automatically calculated this MP’s stance based on all of their votes on the topic. You can browse the source data on PublicWhip.org.uk.

Major votes

  • On 17 Jan 2024: Anneliese Dodds voted no on Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill Show vote
  • On 18 May 2022: Anneliese Dodds was absent for a vote on Programme for Government — Amendment from the Leader of the Liberal Democrats Show vote
  • On 26 Apr 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted to be more lenient when assessing if a refugee had "come to the United Kingdom directly from a country or territory where their life or freedom was threatened" and "presented themselves without delay to the authorities", to put the onus of proof on the Government, and to give due weight to the best interests of children and family unity, in relation to such determinations, and to require the law to ensure refugees should not be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life or freedom. Show vote
  • On 20 Apr 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted to allow those seeking asylum, and their adult dependents, to work if a decision on their application has not been made within six months. Show vote
  • On 20 Apr 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted to prevent anyone from being removed from, or required to leave, the UK while their asylum application is pending. Show vote
  • On 20 Apr 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted for UK law to allow entry to the UK to seek asylum and against UK law enabling unaccompanied children in Europe who have a family member in the UK to seek asylum in the UK. Show vote
  • On 20 Apr 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted against creating an offence of entering the United Kingdom without a valid entry clearance (if one is required), and in favour of creating an alternative narrower offence of arriving in the United Kingdom in breach of a deportation order. Show vote
  • On 20 Apr 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted not to make it an offence to help an asylum-seeker enter the UK even where that help is provided "for gain" and not to make it an offence to help an asylum-seeker if there is a "reasonable excuse" for helping. Show vote
  • On 22 Mar 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted not to permit treating refugees who have not "come to the United Kingdom directly from a country or territory where their life or freedom was threatened" and "presented themselves without delay to the authorities" differently from those who have. Show vote
  • On 22 Mar 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted to allow "asylum seekers and their adult dependents, including failed asylum seekers who have raised further submissions, to work on the same terms as a person with refugee status if a decision on their claim has not been determined within six months". Show vote
  • On 22 Mar 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted forbid removing someone from the UK, even to a safe third country, whilst their asylum claim is pending. Show vote
  • On 22 Mar 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted to allow people to enter the United Kingdom to seek asylum if they are coming from Europe and have a family member living lawfully in the UK. Show vote
  • On 22 Mar 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted not to make it an offence to knowingly arrive in the United Kingdom without a valid entry clearance, if such a clearance is required. Show vote
  • On 22 Mar 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted not to consider asylum seekers who fail, when requested, to provide information relating to them being a victim of slavery or trafficking within a set time-limit, to have reduced credibility. Show vote
  • On 22 Mar 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted to raise the threshold for denying an individual the 30-day recovery period for victims, or potential victims of slavery or trafficking, during which they cannot be removed from the United Kingdom, and to prevent those under 18 years ever being denied the recovery period. Show vote
  • On 8 Dec 2021: Anneliese Dodds voted against a series of changes to the law on immigration and nationality, against permitting the removal of asylum seekers with applications pending to other countries and against provisions aimed at discouraging unsafe and dangerous routes of entry. Show vote
  • On 7 Dec 2021: Anneliese Dodds voted to exempt those facing persecution in their own countries, and others in need of international protection, from a new offence of arriving in the UK without a valid entry clearance. Show vote
  • On 20 Jul 2021: Anneliese Dodds voted against a series of changes to the law on immigration and nationality, against permitting the removal of asylum seekers with applications pending to other countries and against provisions aimed at discouraging unsafe and dangerous routes of entry. Show vote
  • On 20 Jul 2021: Anneliese Dodds voted against a series of changes to the law on immigration and nationality, against permitting the removal of asylum seekers with applications pending to other countries and against provisions aimed at discouraging unsafe and dangerous routes of entry. Show vote
  • On 19 Oct 2020: Anneliese Dodds voted to allow those in the EU who wish to make a claim for asylum in the UK, and who would have been eligible for transfer to the UK under EU regulations, to enter the UK to make their claim. Show vote
  • On 30 Jun 2020: Anneliese Dodds voted to retain rights for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, spouses, vulnerable adults and dependant adults to join a family member who is legally present in the United Kingdom. Show vote
  • On 22 Jan 2020: Anneliese Dodds voted to require ministers to seek to negotiate with the EU to allow unaccompanied children seeking asylum to join their relatives by moving from the UK to the EU or vice-versa, and voted against merely requiring the Government to set out its policy on this subject. Show vote
  • On 8 Jan 2020: Anneliese Dodds voted to retain a requirement for ministers to seek to negotiate an agreement with the EU to enable unaccompanied child refugees to join their relatives. Show vote

Scoring Agreements

Agreements are when Parliament takes a decision without holding a vote.

This does not necessarily mean universal approval, but does mean there were no (or few) objections made to the decision being made.

No scoring agreements are part of this policy while this member was elected.

Minor votes

  • On 26 Apr 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted to require that, so far as possible under new asylum laws, no refugees will be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life or freedom and to require a court or tribunal breaching that principle to make a declaration to that effect. Show vote
  • On 20 Apr 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted to explicitly require that no refugees will be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life or freedom as a result of the operation of new asylum laws. Show vote
  • On 22 Mar 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted to explicitly require that no refugees will be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life or freedom as a result of the operation of new asylum laws. Show vote
  • On 22 Mar 2022: Anneliese Dodds voted for the resettlement, in the United Kingdom, of at least 10,000 refugees per year. Show vote

Informative Agreements

Agreements are when Parliament takes a decision without holding a vote.

This does not necessarily mean universal approval, but does mean there were no (or few) objections made to the decision being made.

No informative agreements are part of this policy while this member was elected.

Note for journalists and researchers: The data on this page may be used freely, on condition that TheyWorkForYou.com is cited as the source.

For an explanation of the vote descriptions please see our page about voting information on TheyWorkForYou.

Profile photo: © Parliament (CC-BY 3.0)