'This has to end... we must secure Britain's borders'

NEW Conservative Party is here which is determined to deport “every illegal immigrant”, according to Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick. The 43-yearold former immigration minister promises a radically different approach to protect the integrity of Britain’s borders if the Tories can win back the trust of Britain’s electorate.

- By David Williamson

The days of “pussyfooting” are over and at least 150,000 people with no right to live here would be deported each year by a dedicated “Removals Force”, he pledges.

Mr Jenrick did not quit the stage when he came second in last year’s leadership race, but kept his foot to the floor, working to rebuild a party reeling from the cataclysmic 2024 election loss.

Now he wants more action so the Conservatives can escape their third-place position in the polls, behind Labour and Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.

“We've got to put our foot on the pedal and gain some momentum,” he says.

Recent Ipsos polling found public concern about immigration has reached its highest level in a decade, with 51% naming it an important issue for Britain.

Mr Jenrick wants removals to continue “until every single illegal migrant in this country is deported”, sending out the message that people who break the law by coming to Britain “have absolutely no chance of making a life here in the UK”.

He is fully behind plans to “scrap immigration tribunals”, warning that judges’ decisions have “tested the patience of the British public beyond breaking point”.

And Mr Jenrick is confident Britain can tackle the “jumped-up gangsters” behind small-boat crossings, arguing this is “not as complicated a challenge as some like to think”.

He says: “What we would do is send a very clear signal: if you come here illegally you will be detained, you will be removed within days and you have zero chance of making a life in the UK.

“If you happen to have come here before these measures came into place, our new Removals Force is going to find you and is going to deport you.”