Malaysia sends back trash, says won't be world's waste bin
Penang (Malaysia), Jan 20: Malaysia has sent back 150 containers of plastic waste to 13 mainly rich countries since the third quarter last year, with the environment minster warning on Monday that those who want to make the country a rubbish bin of the world can "dream on".
Shipments of unwanted rubbish have been rerouted to Southeast Asia since China banned the import of plastic waste in 2018, but Malaysia and other developing countries are fighting back.
Environment Minister Yeo Bee Yin said another 110 containers are expected to be sent back by the middle of this year.
Yeo said the successful repatriation of a total 3,737 metric tonnes (4,120 US tons) of waste followed strict enforcement at key Malaysian ports to block smuggling of waste and shuttering more than 200 illegal plastic recycling factories.
Of the 150 containers, 43 were returned to France, 42 to the United Kingdom, 17 to the United States, 11 to Canada, 10 to Spain and the rest to Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Portugal, China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Lithuania, her ministry said.
She said the Malaysian government didn't pay a single cent, with the costs of sending back the waste fully borne by the shipping liners and companies responsible for importing and exporting the waste.
Yeo said talks were ongoing with US authorities to take back another 60 containers this year. Canada also has 15 more containers, Japan 14, the UK 9 and Belgium 8 from 110 more containers that are still being held at Malaysian ports, she said.
"If people want to see us as the rubbish dump of the world, you dream on," Yeo told reporters during inspection at a port in northern Penang state.
Yeo said the government will launch an action plan on illegal plastic importation next month that will help the different agencies coordinate enforcement and speed up the process of returning the waste.
"Our position is very firm. We just want to send back (the waste) and we just want to give a message that Malaysia is not the dumping site of the world," she added.
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UK imposes study visa bans on Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar, Sudan
London (PTI): The UK on Wednesday imposed a study visa ban on four countries accused of using the route as a backdoor entry to seek permanent refuge in the country, as part of a wider clampdown on the soaring rates of asylum applications.
The so-called "emergency brake" on student visas applies to Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan, with Afghans also subject to a skilled worker visa ban following a major surge in asylum claims from these countries.
The move comes as UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood introduces new legislation in Parliament this week, with the visa brake to be introduced via an Immigration Rules change on Thursday to come into force on March 26.
"Britain will always provide refuge to people fleeing war and persecution, but our visa system must not be abused," said Mahmood.
“That is why I am taking the unprecedented decision to refuse visas for those nationals seeking to exploit our generosity. I will restore order and control to our borders,” she said.
According to official statistics released by the Home Office alongside the visa ban announcement, asylum applications by students from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan rocketed by over 470 per cent between 2021 and 2025 – making them among the most likely nationalities to claim asylum.
Meanwhile, the number of Afghans on work visas claiming asylum now outstripping the number of visas issued.
In what has been described as an “unprecedented step”, the Home Office said it will end sponsored study visas from all four countries and skilled worker visas for Afghan nationals.
“Tough action is required as asylum claims from legal routes have more than trebled since 2021 – making up 39 per cent of the 100,000 people who applied last year. In total, 133,760 people have claimed asylum after arriving legally in the past five years,” the Home Office said.
It said these refugees end up having to be accommodated at the expense of the British taxpayer, with an “above average proportion” of people from the four countries claiming destitution.
“Asylum support is currently costing more than 4 billion pounds a year – with nearly 16,000 nationals from the four countries currently supported at public expense, including over 6,000 in hotels," it added.
According to official data, between 2021 and the year ending September 2025, the proportion of Afghan asylum claims to study visas issued was 95 per cent, applications by students from Myanmar soared 16-fold over the same period and claims by students from Cameroon and Sudan spiked by more than 330 per cent.
The government pointed to its success in reducing student asylum claims by 20 per cent over the course of 2025, but stressed that further action is needed as those arriving on study visas still make up 13 per cent of all claims in the system.
The visa ban announcement comes on the back of Mahmood's announcement earlier this week that asylum status in the UK will be temporary, to be reviewed after 30 months.
