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The Scottish Refugee Council has sent Shabana Mahmood a jigsaw puzzle to assist the Labour MP in seeing the "bigger picture", telling her to "slow down" and "refocus her energy on creating a system that’s efficient, fair and works for everyone".
Mahmood wants to make the UK a less attractive destination for illegal immigrants, with an announcement this week stating asylum seekers who break the law or work illegally are to be thrown out of UK Government-funded accommodation and lose their support payments.
The rule change means only those with legitimate asylum claims who follow the rules will get taxpayer-funded support, Mahmood said.
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In response to this, the Scottish Refugee Council sent a puzzle with a note alongside it, which stated: “Dear Home Secretary, you’ve had a busy week. So, why don’t you take a day off with a Scottish Refugee Council Bigger Picture Jigsaw.”
The charity, along with a wide variety of organisations across civic society, has been critical of the UK Government’s lack of long-term solutions that will work for people seeking safety and the communities who welcome them.
A Scottish Refugee Council spokesperson said: “Puzzles are a great way to slow down, connect and see the bigger picture.
"Perhaps if Home Secretary Mahmood took a break from announcing hostile policy changes every day, she would have the space to refocus her energy on creating a system that’s efficient, fair and works for everyone.”
Earlier this week, Tim Naor Hilton – chief executive of Refugee Action – said the Home Secretary was looking for “a bump in the polls” with the recent announcements.
“The Home Secretary already has the power to deny support and accommodation to people seeking asylum who are not destitute or who have broken the rules," Hilton said.
“This is the latest in a long line of announcements from successive governments that bullies refugees for a bump in the polls rather than try to solve the real problems faced by people and communities – poverty, homelessness, and the rise of the far right.
“Ministers must end this dangerous race to the bottom and make the case for a UK that welcomes people fleeing war and torture and supports them to rebuild their lives here.”
READ MORE: Home Secretary plans visa bans for three countries amid asylum system overhaul
Study visas for nationals from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan have been also stopped, as have work visas for Afghans.
Mahmood halted the visa routes because she claims a growing number of people from these countries are using legal migration routes as a backdoor to claim asylum in the UK.
The Home Office described the suspension on visa claims as an “unprecedented” step.
The Home Secretary has previously threatened a similar halt to all UK visas for Angola, Namibia and the Democratic of Congo in November, unless their governments agreed to take back illegal migrants.