Reform ‘would deport 600,000’

REFORM UK would seek to deport up to 600,000 asylum seekers in its first parliament – if elected to government.

- PRESS ASSOCIATION REPORTERS

Nigel Farage warned of a “genuine threat to public order” without action to tackle illegal migration, as he and Zia Yusuf launched the party’s plans at an event at London Oxford Airport.

Reform UK describes its “operation restoring justice” as a five-year emergency programme to detain and deport illegal migrants and deter future arrivals that they would enact, if elected to government.

Downing Street criticised Mr Farage’s plans as “old gimmicks” while emphasising Sir Keir Starmer's grasp of the public’s “strength of feeling” on the issue of small boat crossings, over which the Prime Minister has been facing mounting pressure.

Reform UK pledged to scale up detention capacity for asylum seekers to 24,000 and secure deals with countries such as Afghanistan, Eritrea and Iran to return migrants to their countries.

Mr Farage failed to answer when asked how much he would be prepared to pay to Iran and the Taliban to take back deportees.

Number 10 swerved criticising Reform UK’s proposals to reach returns deals with countries with chequered human rights records.