Nigel Farage's Reform party will pledge to roll out its own Trump-style tariffs as its popularity in the polls plummets.
Reform UK is expected to reveal that it would use tariffs to force countries to take back migrants, in plans expected to be unveiled next week. After announcing "visa freezes" for people from certain countries, Reform UK could now lay out plans to hit countries that wouldn't be greatly impacted by these visa plans. Farage's party is now saying it would go further with sanctions such as tariffs and airline bans to apply more pressure on certain nations.
Trump's tariffs backfire
Farage's pal Donald Trump has imposed a raft of tariffs throughout his second term which he argued would benefit the US economy, but seem to have backfired.
The cost of many everyday items in the US would have been cheaper without Trump's tariffs, according to the New York Federal Reserve. A team of researchers at the central bank found that the price of 67 categories of goods were 2.9% higher, as of February, due to the President's tariffs, according to CNBC.
Reform's immigration plans
Despite Trump's kamikaze tariffs, Reform UK will soon announce its own set of tariffs based on immigration. The party has already said it would impose "visa freezes" on people wanting to visit the UK legally from countries including Pakistan, Afghanistan and Syria if these nations do not accept deportees.
These would halt any new visas for nationals of those countries – as well as Eritrea, Sudan and Somalia – which Reform would target due to having significant levels of visas issued to the UK.
For countries that would not be greatly affected by visa measures, Reform could propose using tariffs. Egypt is a potential example, according to the Sunday Times.
Further measures and poll blow
Foreign airlines could also be banned from using British airspace and citizens from those countries barred from transit. Reform also plans to strike deals with third countries to deport "extreme cases" where no country is willing to take them back, or it is inappropriate to return them to their home country. The party also wants to review every refugee status granted for the five years prior to a Reform government taking office.
Nigel Farage said: "I will not tolerate countries who won't take back illegal migrants. I'll impose tariffs, airline bans and visa bans on any country that refuses."
This comes as Reform UK faced a huge polling blow as it trails behind the Labour Party, which has soared under Andy Burnham. YouGov's latest polling, for Sky News and The Times, found Labour's poll ratings have risen to a five-point lead over Reform UK.
Reform UK were down three points in the latest polling data, which put Farage's party at 22%, trailing behind Labour at 27%. The party's plummet comes amid several scandals and probes into donations.
