Leader of the UK Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has announced what she described as the “toughest reforms Britain has ever seen” in immigration policy, unveiling an aggressive new border strategy aimed at detaining and deporting 150,000 illegal migrants annually.
In a video message posted on her X account on Sunday, Badenoch said the Radical Borders Plan would introduce a new Removals Force, modelled after the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to overhaul the UK’s border enforcement system.
“My message is clear: if you’re here illegally, you will be detained and deported,” she declared in the caption.
Badenoch, who has positioned herself as a hardliner on immigration, sharply criticised both Conservative and Labour governments for their handling of the migration crisis.
She accused Labour of presiding over record levels of illegal crossings and wasting public funds on asylum accommodations.
“Today, I’m launching our Radical Borders Plan, the toughest reforms Britain has ever seen to border laws and operations.
“Successive governments have failed on immigration. Labour promised to smash the gangs.
Instead, in just a year, they delivered record small boat crossings, over 50,000 illegal arrivals, 32,000 people in asylum hotels, billions wasted.
“It’s pure weakness. Britain needs a serious, credible plan and the backbone to deliver it,” Badenoch said.
It was stated that under the proposed plan, asylum claims from illegal entrants will be banned, the Human Rights Act repealed, and the UK will withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights.
However, in an interview on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Badenoch drew criticism for dismissing questions about where deported migrants would be sent.
“I’m tired of all of these irrelevant questions about where they should go.
“They will go back to where they should be or another country, but they should not be here,” she said.
When pressed further, she added: “They will go back to where they came from.”
According to Sky News, the new Removals Force will replace the existing Home Office Immigration Enforcement unit and will be granted sweeping powers, including the use of facial recognition technology without prior warning, to identify and remove undocumented migrants.
If approved, Badenoch’s plan would mark one of the most radical overhauls of UK immigration policy in decades, intensifying the political debate over border control and human rights protections.
