Kemi Badenoch unveils plan to deport 750,000 illegal migrants from UK in five years

Kemi Badenoch, leader of the United Kingdom’s Conservative Party, has announced a proposed border policy intended to deport 150,000 illegal migrants each year.

Badenoch vowed to bar anyone entering the UK illegally from ever seeking asylum, setting a target of deporting 750,000 undocumented migrants within five years.

In videos on her official X handle on Sunday, Badenoch described the plan as the “toughest reforms Britain has ever seen to border laws and operations”.

“Successive governments have failed on immigration. Labour promised to smash the gangs,” she said.

“Instead, just a year, they deliver 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. That’s Conservatives. That’s our borders plan.

“My message is clear: if you come here illegally, you will be deported. We will shut down the asylum hotel racket, save billions and take back control of Britain’s borders.”

The Conservative Party is holding its annual conference in Manchester and has rolled out a series of border policy proposals.

The party said the deportation plan would cover those already living in the UK illegally, future irregular arrivals, and foreign nationals convicted of offences more serious than minor traffic violations.

The Conservative Party plans to withdraw the UK from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), ending a 75-year membership, to block asylum appeals.

Under the new proposals, the Home Office’s immigration enforcement unit would be rebranded as a “Removals Force”, and its budget would be doubled by an amount the conservatives say would be funded by shutting down asylum hotels.

They said migrants would be deported either to their home countries, where possible, or to safe third countries willing to accept them.

The party pledged to pursue return agreements with other nations and to threaten cuts to aid and visa access for those who refuse to cooperate.

The party also intends to narrow asylum eligibility to people persecuted by their own governments, excluding those fleeing war or restrictive laws on religion or sexuality.

The conservatives said they would abolish the immigration tribunal, shifting appeals to Home Office officials, and also proposed ending taxpayer-funded legal aid in immigration cases, arguing in their policy document that lawyers would be unnecessary since claims would be fairly assessed against the criteria.

Under Badenoch’s leadership, the Conservative Party has been struggling with weak poll numbers and the mounting threat from Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.