Reform UK deportations could see up to 600,000 migrants removed from Britain within five years if the party wins the next general election. Party leader Nigel Farage unveiled the controversial proposal, insisting that barring asylum claims from those arriving by small boats is the only way to stop Channel crossings.
The plan, dubbed Operation Restoring Justice, would cost an estimated £10 billion but Farage argued it would save money long term by reducing reliance on asylum hotels and related services. Reform says it would fund voluntary returns with £2,500 payments, expand charter deportation flights to five daily, and construct detention centers capable of housing 24,000 people within 18 months.
Key to the strategy is a proposed Illegal Migration (Mass Deportation) Bill, which would:
- Impose a legal duty on the Home Secretary to remove illegal migrants.
- Ban deportees from re-entering the UK for life.
- Override international treaties like the 1951 Refugee Convention.
- Withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights, replacing the Human Rights Act with a new British Bill of Rights limited to citizens and legal residents.
Farage compared the policy to Australia’s offshore deterrence measures and claimed it would end small boat arrivals “within days.” Reform’s chair Zia Yusuf estimated more than 650,000 adults live illegally in the UK, although he admitted the figure was only an approximation.
The proposal has drawn sharp criticism. Labour branded it “unworkable,” pointing to the lack of detail on detention sites, costs, and handling of families. The Conservatives accused Reform of recycling policies they had already announced, while the Liberal Democrats dismissed the plan as unrealistic.
With migrant arrivals on small boats reaching 28,288 this year so far, the debate over immigration continues to dominate British politics. The Reform UK deportations plan signals a major escalation in hardline policies, setting the stage for fierce legal, political, and ethical battles ahead of the next election.
