Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to scrap the government's Rwanda asylum scheme "straight away" if Labour wins the next general election, promising to redirect the money saved towards hiring specialist investigators to tackle small boat crossings in the Channel. The Labour leader also unveiled plans to use counter-terrorism powers to "smash" people-smuggling gangs.
Speaking in Dover alongside Natalie Elphicke, the former Conservative MP who defected to Labour on Wednesday, Sir Keir said his party would establish a new Border Security Command to work with Border Force, MI5 and the National Crime Agency. He argued that scrapping the Rwanda policy would free up £75 million in the first year of a Labour government to fund hundreds of extra investigators and intelligence agents. The scheme, first announced in 2022 and delayed by legal challenges, is due to begin in July. Labour contends it will not deter migrants, while the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, insisted the government had a plan and would "get our planes off".
Sir Keir said Labour would "get rid of the policy straight away", adding: "I'm not going to continue a policy I don't think is going to work, which is going to cost a fortune." He said he wanted crossings to come down "dramatically". The party also proposes expanding powers under the Terrorism Act to allow police to search suspected smugglers, monitor their financial accounts, and restrict their access to the internet, banking and travel. Fresh legislation would be fast-tracked, he said. Labour also aims to negotiate access to the EU's Eurodac database, which stores fingerprints of unauthorised arrivals.
However, Peter Walsh from Oxford University's Migration Observatory said the plan was "unlikely to be a game changer" and appeared "pretty similar" to the existing Small Boats Operational Command. The National Audit Office has estimated the Rwanda scheme would cost £370 million over five years, plus £120 million if more than 300 people are relocated, and £20,000 per individual.
Both parties have accused each other of offering an amnesty. The Conservatives have described Labour's approach as an "amnesty for illegal immigrants" because it would allow small boat arrivals to apply for asylum, which is currently banned under the Illegal Migration Act. Labour denies this, and Sir Keir accused the Tories of running a "Travelodge amnesty" by failing to process claims and housing people in hotels instead.
