The government has suggested they could rank migrant nationalities with the highest crime rates in a league table.

The amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill that would see the nationality, visa and asylum status of every offender convicted in English and Welsh courts published on an annual basis in crime “league tables”.

More than a dozen Tory MPs have backed the proposal, which was put forward by former immigration minister Robert Jenrick.

The proposal is similar to approaches already adopted by some US states and Denmark.

Mr Jenrick said: “We cannot hope to fix our immigration system without understanding the problem. The national debate on legal and illegal migration is hindered by a lack of data on the fiscal, economic and societal impacts of migration.

“There is mounting concern that the UK is importing crime, particularly violent crime, sexual assaults and drug production. We need to have transparency so the public knows what’s happening and policy can be formulated accordingly.”

A government source told The Telegraph: “We will certainly look properly at this amendment and engage with colleagues in the usual way.”