(MENAFN) Britain’s Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has admitted that the government is struggling to control illegal immigration, warning that the situation is eroding public trust in state institutions.

Mahmood is expected to issue the warning during a meeting with Balkan interior ministers in London on Wednesday, where discussions will center on measures to curb migrant arrivals to the UK.

According to excerpts of her prepared remarks published by several UK outlets, Mahmood will say that “the public rightly expect that their government will be able to determine who enters their country and who must leave.”

“Today, in this country, that is not the case,” she concedes. “The failure to bring order to our borders is eroding trust not just in us as political leaders… but in the credibility of the state itself.”

The home secretary will emphasize that solving the problem requires greater international coordination rather than “turn[ing] inwards,” and has proposed creating “return hubs” for migrants.

On Tuesday, Mahmood announced plans to raise the English-language requirement for migrants from GCSE to A-level proficiency.

Government data shows that 49,000 irregular migrants arrived in the UK in the year ending June 2025 — a 27% increase from the previous year. Small-boat crossings made up 88% of those arrivals, rising 38% year on year.

Public discontent has also surged, with large protests held across the country last month under the banner of “Operation Raise the Colours,” where demonstrators waved St. George’s and Union Jack flags.

Meanwhile, support for the Reform Party, led by Nigel Farage, has climbed to 35%, ahead of Labour at 20% and the Conservatives at 17%, according to a BMG Research poll published last month.

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