Plan to Deport 90,000 Asylum Seekers from the UK

Britain’s political party Reform UK has announced that, if it comes to power, it will immediately deport 90,000 asylum seekers and impose a five-year ban on new asylum applications. Under the plan, neither women nor children would be exempt. According to the British newspaper The Guardian, party leader Nigel Farage announced the toughest immigration policies proposed by his party to date on Monday. Organizations working to protect refugees’ rights have described the proposals as “unworkable” and said they would represent a departure from Britain’s tradition of offering refuge to people fleeing war and persecution.

Under the plan, all new asylum claims would be automatically rejected, while unsuccessful applicants would be sent back to their countries of origin or transferred to a safe third country. Countries that refuse to take back their own citizens could face trade tariffs, visa restrictions or restrictions on access to British airspace. Asked whether children would be exempt from the policy, Farage said that allowing Palestinian or Afghan women and children to enter might appear to be a compassionate gesture, but it would open the door to family reunification, eventually allowing husbands and other relatives to follow.

Last month, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said that under Britain’s relaunched resettlement programme, approximately one-quarter of those arriving would be Afghan women and girls fleeing Taliban rule or Palestinians who had left Gaza. However, a Home Office source rejected Farage’s claim, saying that people arriving under the scheme would not be entitled to family reunification. Farage also said that his government would review the cases of everyone granted asylum since 2024. Those originating from countries that a Reform UK government deemed safe could lose their right to remain in Britain.

The party’s 17-page policy document proposes expanding immigration enforcement across state institutions. Immigration checks would be incorporated into inspections relating to food, housing and licensing. People potentially facing deportation could be identified through records of water and electricity consumption, aerial photographs and complaints from neighbours. Zia Yusuf, the party’s prospective home secretary, said Reform UK wanted to deport “more than one million people”. However, he said the party did not support sending anyone back to face murder or torture, adding that third-country arrangements could be used in difficult cases.

Meanwhile, the Refugee Council warned that shutting down Britain’s asylum system would create chaos, driving people who nevertheless managed to reach the country underground rather than allowing them to enter an organised system. Jon Featonby, the organisation’s chief policy analyst, said the proposals would bring an end to Britain’s proud tradition, established after the Second World War, of protecting people fleeing war and persecution.

Bridget Phillipson, chair of the Labour Party, said Nigel Farage was proposing increasingly hard-line policies amid questions about his financial affairs and mounting political pressure. She argued that Labour could control immigration through serious measures without dismantling the entire asylum system. Public opinion expert Luke Tryl described the policy as an attempt to attract attention, arguing that completely abolishing the asylum system was contrary even to the wishes of most Reform UK voters. According to Tryl, only 14 per cent of Refor