The Reform UK leader’s vow to deport 600,000 asylum seekers, expand detention centres and lock-up women and children has sparked outrage and disbelief
Nigel Farage’s draconian proposals for mass deportations of asylum seekers – including plans to lock-up women and children – have been met with much shock and disbelief.
The Reform UK leader indicated that some 600,000 asylum seekers could be deported in the first parliament of a Reform UK government. And he pledged to scale up detention capacity for 24,000. But his plans to detain women and children and deport vulnerable people to war-torn countries were quickly ripped to shreds. And we want to know if you were shocked at his ideas by taking our poll below.
Farage was swiftly accused of having fantasy plans with little detail provided on the practicality of deportation flights or on the costings of the proposals. And his inflammatory language was branded “reprehensible” after he appeared sanguine about failed asylum seekers being tortured or murdered if they were sent back after entering the UK illegally.
The news conference at London Oxford Airport came after a weekend in which hundreds of people risked the journey across the Channel to reach Britain.
Labour says it is addressing the problem through its recently introduced “one in, one out” pilot scheme with France, which began earlier this month.
Under the scheme, the UK can return some Channel arrivals to France in exchange for asylum seekers with connections to Britain. However, both Reform and the Conservatives argue the plan will have little impact, pointing out that more than 28,000 people have already crossed into the UK in 2025.
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Reform has instead proposed its “operation restoring justice programme,” which opposition parties have criticised as “inflammatory” and “unworkable.” The plan would see anyone arriving illegally in the UK by small boat detained, deported, and denied the right to remain.
Nigel Farage has claimed that, if Reform were in government, the party could deport around 600,000 asylum seekers during its first parliamentary term, at an estimated cost of £10bn over five years.
He added that illegal migrants would be sent back to their countries of origin, arguing that the UK could do so by opting out of certain human rights obligations.
Charities have accused Reform of exploiting public concern about illegal migration for political gain, warning: “This is not who we are as a country”. Keir Starmer’s spokesman said Mr Farage was resorting to “old gimmicks” by serving up reheated Tory policies that had left the asylum system in chaos.
What do YOU think? Are you shocked by Farage’s mass deportation plans? Take our poll above and expand on your feelings in the comments below