UK Politics

Nigel Farage, the leader of Britain’s hard-right Reform UK party, said Tuesday that if he wins the next election he will leave the European human rights convention and immediately detain and deport anyone who arrives in the country illegally.Farage laid out his plans to tackle illegal immigration following a significant rise in the number of migrants who arrive by boats across the English Channel, and weeks of protests over the government’s use of hotels to house asylum-seekers. Despite holding just four of the 650 seats in the House of Commons, Farage ‘s party has gained momentum by seizing on public frustration over successive governments’ inability to bring down the number of migrants coming by boat. National polls have suggested that support for Reform equals or surpasses that of the ruling Labour Party and the Conservatives.“If you come to the U.K. illegally, you will be detained and deported and never, ever allowed to stay, period,” Farage told a press conference. “The mood in the country around this issue is a mix between total despair and rising anger,” he said, adding there is now “a genuine threat to public order” if no action is taken.Farage, who has long sought to link problems such as public healthcare and housing to migrant arrivals, reiterated his stance that the U.K. is being “invaded” by migrants. He said that if he comes to power, Reform will leave the European Convention on Human Rights and repeal or “disapply” all other rights treaties to bar all asylum claims and ensure migrants who arrive without authorization are deported.The party pledged to scale up the capacity of detention facilities and secure deals with countries including Afghanistan, Eritrea and Iran, to return migrants.Asked repeatedly about the prospect of asylum-seekers being tortured or killed if they were sent back to countries they fled from, Farage said: “The alternative is to do nothing … We cannot be responsible for all the sins that take place around the world.”So far this year, more than 28,000 people have crossed the English Channel to arrive in the U.K. by boat, up about 50% from the same period last year. A much larger number of people — over 111,000 — applied for asylum in the U.K. in the year up to June, official figures show.Prime Minister Keir Starmer has ditched the Conservative administration’s flagship plan to send migrants who arrived by unauthorized means to Rwanda. Instead, he has pinned hopes on a deal agreed with France last month to send some migrants who cross the English Channel on dinghies and inflatable boats back to France.U.K. officials have suggested the “one in, one out” plan is a major breakthrough, despite the initial program involving a limited number of people. The government is also looking to speed up the processing of asylum claims. Officials have housed tens of thousands of migrants awaiting their asylum outcome in hotels at public expense — a controversial policy that has long simmered but tipped into protests in recent weeks after a hotel resident allegedly tried to kiss a 14-year-old girl and was charged with sexual assault. The man has denied the accusation.Anti-migrant demonstrators, as well as counterprotests, have flared after local authorities won a temporary injunction last week to shut down the Bell Hotel in Epping, on the outskirts of London. More

Reform UK would pay the Taliban money to take back migrants who entered Britain illegally, Zia Yusuf has admitted. The former party chairman said he thinks it is “quite reasonable” for the British government to hand money to the regime in order to agree a returns agreement with the country.It comes as Nigel Farage prepares to unveil Reform UK’s bid to tackle illegal migration with an overhaul of human rights law and mass deportations.Those who come to the UK on small boats would have no right to claim asylum under Reform’s plans More

Children will need to be given democracy lessons in schools from the age of 11 to help prepare them to vote at age 16, the head of the UK elections watchdog has said.Democratic education will be rolled out to those aged 14 and over first, said Vijay Rangarajan, the chief executive of the Electoral Commission – but added that this will need to be expanded to make sure young people are ready to cast their vote. He also said teachers will be asked to leave their politics at the classroom door in order to make sure students get the broadest understanding of the political system, and are not swayed on how to vote. Labour’s manifesto committed the party to lowering the voting age for parliamentary elections to 16, in line with Scottish and Welsh elections More

The courts would probably block Nigel Farage’s attempts at mass deportation using British common law, even if he “unpicked Britain” from international human rights laws, former attorney general Dominic Grieve has warned.The shot across the bows for Reform UK’s extreme proposals comes as Mr Farage prepares to lay out details on his plan on Tuesday morning.Mr Grieve, who recently led the UK Governance Project, a commission which set out recommendations to restore confidence in decision-makers, has issued a scathing critique of Reform’s plans to crack down on the small boats and illegal immigration.It comes as polling by YouGov has revealed that the public is losing confidence in Sir Keir Starmer to tackle the migration crisis, with 71 per cent saying he is handling it “badly” amid record numbers of small boats crossing the Channel, despite a new returns deal with France.Dominic Grieve said Reform’s deportation plan could be blocked by the courts More

A second day of demonstrations outside asylum hotels saw protesters clash with police on Sunday as the government set out plans to accelerate the appeals process for refugees whose claims are rejected. Under the “Abolish Asylum System” banner, demonstrators gathered in Solihull, Dudley, Epping, Stevenage, London, Manchester, and Norwich.Yvette Cooper said a new fast-track appeals system would see decisions made more quickly, curtailing the spiralling backlog in the courts and helping Labour meet its promise to end the use of asylum hotels. While the backlog of initial decisions has been cut under Labour, there are about 51,000 asylum appeals waiting to be heard, more than a year on average to reach a decision.Decisions will be prioritised for foreign national offenders and those in asylum accommodation under the plans, with professionally trained adjudicators replacing judges to remove cases from the backed-up justice system. Home secretary Yvette Cooper vowed to speed up the appeals process More

Angela Rayner has purchased an £800,000 seaside apartment in Hove, which will be a third home for the deputy prime minister. Critics called on Ms Rayner to answer questions about the properties she owns and where she pays council tax after she purchased the property. Shadow housing secretary James Cleverly said: “Angela Rayner is responsible for housing policy, yet she won’t even be straight about her own.” “Time and again she’s been asked to declare exactly what properties she owns and where she pays council tax, and time and again she’s dodged those questions,” he told The Mail on Sunday. He added: “We’ve done everything possible to get answers, but she still refuses to come clean. That matters, because this is the same deputy prime minister who’s hiked taxes on family homes across the country. If she’s not prepared to be open about her own affairs while taxing everyone else, the public will wonder what she has to hide.”Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner is also housing secretary More

Labour will abolish most short prison sentences and roll out a Texas-style scheme under which inmates can earn early release through good behaviour, it has emerged. The government will next month legislate for the changes, as well as toughening up community punishments. As it seeks to avoid a fresh prison capacity crisis, it will seek to pass a bill containing the changes when parliament returns from recess in September. Shabana Mahmood is pressing ahead with the Texas-style plans More

Sir Keir Starmer’s winter fuel cuts will hit around 600,000 disabled pensioners, the government’s analysis of the policy found.The prime minister’s decision to restrict the payment to those earning £35,000 or less will see more than two million pensioners miss out on the allowance, worth up to £300.Of those, more than a quarter are disabled and will be forced to hand back the £300 payment through the tax system. Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves were forced to change course on winter fuel cuts More