REFUGEES crossing the Channel could face four years in jail under “cruel” new laws introduced today that charities warn will result in thousands of vulnerable people being turned away. 

The Tories’ Nationality and Borders Bill will make it a criminal offence to knowingly enter Britain without permission.

People guilty of this offence could face up to four years behind bars, up from six months under current laws. 

The government also plans to introduce life sentences for individuals accused of people-smuggling, up from the maximum of 14 years. 

Under Home Secretary Priti Patel’s reforms, those intercepted in British territorial seas can also be brought to the country to be prosecuted. 

The Home Office said on Sunday that the harsher punishments are an attempt to prevent “asylum shopping,” claiming some refugees are choosing to claim asylum in Britain over another “safe” country on their journeys. 

But campaigners have accused the government of criminalising asylum-seekers. 

Refugee Council chief executive Enver Solomon said: “For decades, ordinary people have taken extraordinary measures to flee oppression  — from those escaping ethnic cleansing in the Balkans, torture in Zimbabwe or war in Syria — having to make dangerous journeys to reach safety in the UK. 

“They have gone on to become law-abiding citizens, playing by the rules and paying their taxes as proud Britons. 
 
“Today this government is cruelly choosing to not only turn away those in need of safety but also treat them as criminals.”

According to the charity’s analysis of official figures, published today, more than 9,000 people — half of them women and children — who would be accepted as refugees under the current rules would no longer be given safety in Britain under the reforms. 

This is because the legislation proposes to reject asylum-seekers’ claims outright if they enter Britain “illegally,” while the government seeks to remove them to “safe” third countries.

Refugee Council warns that this will lead to as many as 14,200 people being held in reception centres that could be offshore while they wait to be removed. 

The plans have been widely condemned; rights groups warn that they risk breaching international law. 

Refugee Action Chief Executive Tim Naor Hilton said: “Attempts to remove, criminalise, offshore, detain or deport refugees are abhorrent and unlawful.

“None of the Government’s get-tough-quick schemes will fix the real long-term problems that exist in our asylum system, such as record delays, racism and poverty. 

“Ministers must find their moral compass and create an asylum system that’s humane and works effectively.” 

Care4Calais founder Clare Moseley argued that safe routes are often non-existent for people fleeing persecution. 

“Being a refugee means you’re unlikely to have a passport, which means no visa either,” she said. 

“That’s the problem with oppressive regimes – they don’t do things by the book. It’s simply wrong to say that because a desperate refugee travels ‘illegally’ they don’t deserve our help and our government wants to criminalise them.”