Yvette Cooper says deal means cooperation with Iraqi security forces and faster return of refused asylum seekers

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Keir Starmer’s government has signed a deal with Iraq to tackle people smugglers across Europe as new figures showed that net migration to the UK hit a record high of nearly a million in a period covering Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak’s tenures as prime minister.

The agreement will mean close cooperation with Iraqi intelligence and police to tackle organised crime networks, a faster return of refused asylum seekers and the formation of a new taskforce, according to the home secretary, Yvette Cooper.