The Home Secretary pointed to Denmark's success in removing failed asylum seekers.
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Shabana Mahmood has defended her plans to give families of failed asylum seekers £40,000 to encourage them to leave the UK.
The Home Secretary insisted that it would "work" to pay people more if they agree to leave the country within seven days.
The plans, which LBC reported exclusively this morning, begin today with a 150 family trial.
The Home Secretary told LBC that criticism from Reform UK and the Greens are "both wrong".
She said: "These are people who have failed to be granted asylum. People expect us to do everything we can to encourage them to leave."
A Home Office spokesperson stressed: "This is not a pull factor.
“Illegal migrants pay smugglers tens of thousands of pounds to get to Britain.
"If those families offered the time-limited payment refuse, we will forcibly remove them.”
She also pointed to Denmark's success which saw 95 per cent of people taking the offer and claimed that it "works".
If people don't take the offer they will be left with an enforced removal, she added.
But already the policy has attracted huge criticism.
Reform shadow home secretary Zia Yusaf said Labour are "making breaking into Britain even more lucrative".
He added: "So, Labour went to Denmark, worked out illegal migrants need a deterrent to stop them coming here.
"And they announce that those that come here illegally will now win £40,000."
The Greens have accused Labour of scapegoating migrants and said Ms Mahmood's approach is wrong.
A spokesperson said: "The Green Party recognises the great contribution that migrants and refugees make to British society and we want to see policy that treats everyone with dignity rather than treating them harshly for political gain.
"The Home Secretary is deliberately misrepresenting Green Party Policy and reducing it to cheap soundbites.
"Our win in Gorton and Denton showed that the public aren't taken in by Labour's attempts to follow Reform on blaming migrants for the problems facing people in this country."