Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is preparing to unveil a sweeping crackdown on asylum, including suspending the system for five years, scrapping outstanding claims and deporting refugees admitted under existing schemes, should his party take power. The proposals are expected to be announced on Monday, with the party arguing that Britain faces a national security emergency and cannot continue accepting asylum seekers while the number of people living illegally in the country remains unknown.
Seven key changes proposed
The plans would mark a major overhaul of the UK's asylum system, with Reform promising to close legal routes, review existing refugee cases and put pressure on foreign governments to accept deportees. Here are the seven key changes Reform wants to introduce.
1. Suspend the asylum system for five years
Reform would suspend the asylum system for a full parliamentary term if elected, banning anyone from being granted asylum during that period. The party would also declare all applications currently in progress void, effectively ending the processing of outstanding claims.
2. Scrap asylum tribunals and legal refugee routes
All asylum tribunals, legal refugee routes and resettlement schemes would be abolished under the proposals. Reform says Britain has no mandate for resettlement schemes and argues that the country should not continue admitting refugees through these routes.
3. Deport people with outstanding appeals
Around 90,000 outstanding asylum and humanitarian protection appeals would not be heard under a Reform government. Instead, those whose cases remain unresolved would face deportation, rather than having their appeals considered by the existing tribunal system.
Resettlement schemes and reviews
4. Close resettlement schemes and deport arrivals
Reform would immediately close resettlement schemes that Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood recently said would reopen. Around a quarter of those expected to be admitted through the schemes would be Palestinians and women and girls from Afghanistan. The party says anyone who has already arrived in Britain through these schemes would also be deported.
5. Review refugees granted asylum in the past five years
Refugees granted asylum in the UK during the previous five years would have their cases reviewed by the Home Office. The proposal would subject people already granted protection to fresh scrutiny, potentially putting their right to remain in Britain at risk.
Pressure on foreign governments
6. Use visa freezes to punish countries refusing deportees
Reform has already proposed visa freezes against countries that refuse to take back their nationals who have been deported from Britain. Countries targeted would include Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, Eritrea, Sudan and Somalia. The measures would halt new visas for their nationals, putting pressure on their governments to co-operate with removals.
7. Impose tariffs, sanctions and airline bans
The party now plans to go further against countries that cannot be pressured effectively through visa restrictions alone. Reform would consider tariffs, sanctions and airline bans to force foreign governments to accept deportees.
Mr Farage told The Telegraph: “The country is currently facing a national security emergency and the first duty of government is to protect its citizens.” He added: “A Reform government will always put British people first and protect our borders.”
The proposals have already drawn criticism from both Labour and the Conservatives. Labour chairwoman Bridget Phillipson described the plans as “a clear sign of desperation and weakness”, accusing Mr Farage of pursuing increasingly extreme policies. She said abandoning people escaping war and persecution would be rejected by the British public as an assault on the country's common values.
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp, meanwhile, argued that the proposals largely copied existing Conservative policies. He said the Conservatives' own BORDERS plan went further by proposing withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights and the removal of illegal immigrants within a week of arrival, alongside measures targeting modern slavery claims and judicial review loopholes.
