At the Labour conference in September, Mahmood promised to “do whatever it takes” to regain control of Britain’s borders.
She is impressed that Denmark has driven down the number of successful asylum claims to a 40-year low – with the exception of 2020, amid pandemic travel restrictions.
The BBC has been told she dispatched senior Home Office officials to Copenhagen last month to study what lessons could be applied to the UK.
Last week, the BBC also made the journey to Denmark to find out how their immigration system operates.
Mahmood’s opposite number Rasmus Stoklund, Denmark’s minister for Immigration and Integration, is a member of Labour’s sister party the Social Democrats.
He said “We have tightened our laws in many ways.
“We return more people back home. We have made it quite difficult to have family reunification in Denmark.
“You will get expelled a lot easier if you commit crimes. And we have made different programmes to help people go back home voluntarily.”
There is no indication the UK government would follow the Danish example of offering substantial sums – as much as the equivalent of £24,000 – for asylum seekers to return their country of origin, including making a contribution to the cost of their children’s education.
But the BBC understands some of what Stoklund outlined to us is being closely scrutinised in the Home Office.