THE United Kingdom Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch, has unveiled what she called the “toughest immigration reforms in Britain’s history,” announcing a new border strategy that targets the detention and deportation of 150,000 illegal migrants each year.
In a video shared on her X account on Sunday, October 4, Badenoch outlined the ‘Radical Borders Plan’, which includes the creation of a new Removals Force modelled after the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to strengthen and modernise 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 built a reputation as a staunch immigration hardliner, strongly criticised both past Conservative and Labour administrations for their approach to the migration crisis. She accused the Labour Party of overseeing record-high illegal border crossings and misusing public funds on asylum housing.
“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,” Badenoch stated
She further revealed that within just one year, the government had recorded unprecedented small boat crossings, with over 50,000 illegal arrivals and 32,000 people housed in asylum hotels, leading to billions in public spending. She described the situation as a result of “pure weakness,” insisting that Britain needed a serious and credible plan backed by firm leadership.
Under the proposed plan, she said, all illegal arrivals would be deported within a week, with legal obstacles to mass deportations removed and visa sanctions imposed on countries refusing to take back their citizens.
She stressed that the newly proposed enforcement agency would put an end to what she called the “asylum hotel racket,” save taxpayers billions, and restore public confidence in the country’s border system.
She further said that only the Conservative Party had a credible plan to strengthen Britain’s borders, emphasising that anyone who entered the country illegally would be deported.
According to Badenoch, the plan would include banning asylum claims from illegal entrants, repealing the Human Rights Act, and withdrawing the United Kingdom from the European Convention on Human Rights.
Not spared by critics, during an interview on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Badenoch was criticised after she dismissed questions about the destinations of deported migrants. She reportedly said she was “tired of irrelevant questions” regarding where they would be sent, adding that migrants would be returned to “where they should be or another country,” but insisted “they should not be here.” When prodded further, she clarified that they would be sent “back to where they came from.”
According to Sky News, the proposed ‘Removals Force’ would replace the existing Home Office Immigration Enforcement unit and be granted extensive powers, including the authority to use facial recognition technology without prior notice to identify and remove undocumented migrants.
If implemented, Badenoch’s proposal would represent one of the most sweeping reforms of UK immigration policy in decades, further intensifying political debate around border control and human rights protections.
Fatimah Quadri is a Journalist and a Fact-checker at The ICIR. She has written news articles, fact-checks, explainers, and media literacy in an effort to combat information disorder.
She can be reached at sunmibola_q on X or fquadri@icirnigeria.org