The leader of the United Kingdom’s Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has announced a tough new immigration policy that aims to detain and deport 150,000 illegal migrants every year.
Badenoch revealed the plan, called the Radical Borders Plan, in a video posted on her X account on Sunday. She described it as “the toughest reform Britain has ever seen” and said it would overhaul the UK’s border system through the creation of a new Removals Force, similar to the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“My message is clear: if you’re here illegally, you will be detained and deported,” she said.
Badenoch, known for her strict stance on migration, blamed both Conservative and Labour governments for failing to control illegal crossings and wasting taxpayer money on asylum accommodations.
“Successive governments have failed on immigration. Labour promised to smash the gangs,” she said. “Instead, in just one year, they delivered record small boat crossings, over 50,000 illegal arrivals, 32,000 people in asylum hotels, and billions wasted. It’s pure weakness. Britain needs a serious, credible plan and the backbone to deliver it.”
Under the proposed plan, asylum claims from illegal entrants will be banned, the Human Rights Act will be repealed, and the UK will withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights.
Badenoch said all illegal migrants would be deported within a week and that countries refusing to take back their citizens would face visa sanctions.
She added that the new Removals Force would “shut down the asylum hotel racket,” save taxpayers billions, and rebuild public trust in Britain’s border system.
“Only the Conservatives have a serious, credible plan to deliver stronger borders,” she said. “If you come here illegally, you will be deported.”
During an interview on BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Badenoch dismissed questions about where the deported migrants would be sent.
“I’m tired of all of these irrelevant questions about where they should go,” she said. “They will go back to where they should be or another country, but they should not be here.”
When pressed again, she replied, “They will go back to where they came from.”
According to Sky News, the new Removals Force will replace the Home Office Immigration Enforcement unit and will have wider powers, including the use of facial recognition technology without prior warning, to identify and remove undocumented migrants.
If approved, Badenoch’s plan would be one of the most sweeping changes to the UK’s immigration system in decades, likely stirring fresh debate on border control and human rights.
