Rishi Sunak has insisted children will not be exempted from his plan to lock up asylum seekers who cross the Channel.
The PM was confronted by one of his own MPs over his controversial bid to detain and deport new arrivals.
Caroline Nokes, a Tory MP who has likened Mr Sunak's "horrendous" asylum plans to Donald Trump's "caging of children", pressed the PM over the detention of children.
But he insisted the new policy should include families to prevent an "incentive" for people to bring minors with them.
Mr Sunak said: "The intention of this policy is not to detain children but it's important that we don't inadvertently create a policy that incentivises people to bring children who wouldn't otherwise come here.
"Otherwise you create an incentive for a criminal gang to bring a child with them when they otherwise wouldn't be, and I don't think that is a good thing.
"We don't want to create a pull factor to make it more likely that children are making this very perilous journey in conditions that are appalling."
During the appearance before the Commons Liaison Committee, Mr Sunak insisted children "will not be separated from families" and housed in "appropriate accommodation".
The new legislation being debated in Parliament means asylum seekers could be detained indefinitely before being removed to a "safe" country like Rwanda.
It has been denounced by the United Nations' refugee agency as effectively an "asylum ban" and Labour has blasted it for giving the powers to "lock up children".
Mr Sunak was also challenged on Home Secretary Suella Braverman’s warning that southern England is facing an "invasion" of illegal migrants.
Dame Diana Johnson, who chairs the Commons home affairs committee, told the PM that “language matters”, adding that words like invasion “get the Far Right particularly inflamed”.
But the PM replied: “I would say the situation is one that is significant and growing and its important we take action to stop it.”
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