Nigel Farage has said he would scrap the UK’s human rights law to enable the mass deportation of illegal migrants, as the government reportedly prepares to send more than 100 small boat arrivals back to France.
Writing in The Daily Telegraph ahead of a speech later today, the Reform leader said the Human Rights Act would be ripped up should he become prime minister.
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He would also take the country out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and other international treaties, describing them as “malign influences” which had been “allowed to frustrate deportations”.
Pulling Britain out of the ECHR would make it one of only three European countries not signed up – the others being Russia and Belarus.
The UK’s Human Rights Act, Reform say, would be replaced by a British Bill of Rights. This would only apply to British citizens and those with a legal right to live in the UK.
Small boat arrivals would have no right to claim asylum. They would be housed at old military bases before being deported to their country of origin, or third countries like Rwanda.
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One in, one out
Sir Keir Starmer, meanwhile, is said to be ready to implement one of his major policies to tackle the small boats crisis within weeks.
According to The Times, the one in, one out migrant deal he signed with France’s Emmanuel Macron earlier this summer will soon see more than 100 people sent back.
The newspaper reported there are dozens of migrants currently in detention, including some arrested over the bank holiday weekend, who could be among the first sent back to France.
In exchange, the UK would be expected to take an equal number of asylum seekers in France with ties to Britain.
Read more: How will the one in, one out deal work?
A record 28,288 people have crossed the Channel in small boats this year. The total is 46% higher than at the same stage last year.
More boats were seen crossing on Monday, though the figures won’t be published by the Home Office until later.
Sir Keir is under mounting pressure within his own party to grip the issue, with Sir Tony Blair’s former home secretary Lord Blunkett warning the public “will turn on” him.
But they may already have – a YouGov poll over the weekend found 71% of people think the prime minister is dealing with the small boats crisis badly.
Protests have taken place outside hotels used to house asylum seekers over the weekend, and the government is braced for more legal challenges from councils over their use.
Labour have taken a battering in the opinion polls throughout 2025, with Reform consistently in the lead.
