Nigel Farage has announced radical plans to send Britain’s most dangerous criminals to prisons in Central America and other “partner” nations, unveiling a £17.4 billion law and order strategy aimed at halving crime within five years.
Speaking at a Westminster press conference on Monday, the Reform UK leader declared his party would be “the toughest party on law and order this country has ever seen,” promising to “take back control of our streets” and “take back control of our courts.”
The populist party leader put criminals on notice, saying: “If you’re a criminal, I am putting you on notice today that from 2029 or whenever that may be, either you obey the law or you will face very serious justice.”
Foreign Prison Plans
Under the controversial proposals, Reform UK would rent prison space in countries including El Salvador, following models used by both Denmark and the Trump administration in the United States. The party estimates this “dynamic prisons” policy would cost £1.25 billion over a five-year parliament.
Reform MP Sarah Pochin, a former magistrate, defended the overseas prison plan, stating: “The cost to the British taxpayer of prison places is currently estimated at over £50,000 per year and rising. By sending our most serious offenders to overseas jails, we greatly reduce this cost and at the same time they experience a tougher prison environment and lose privileges such as family visits which, quite frankly, they don’t deserve.
Farage suggested sending prisoners to Estonia could reduce costs to approximately £20,000 per year compared to the current £50,000, adding he believed this would be “overwhelmingly popular with the public.
Comprehensive Crime Strategy
The Reform UK crime package includes several major initiatives:
- Recruiting 30,000 new police officers at a cost of £10.5 billion
- Building 12,400 new prison places on Ministry of Defence land for £5 billion
- Constructing five “Nightingale Prisons” with Army assistance
- Ending early release for prisoners convicted of serious violent, sexual or knife offences
- Deporting 10,400 foreign offenders currently in British jails
- Implementing life sentences for repeat offenders who commit three serious crimes
Farage claimed he was already “in conversation with Edi Rama,” the Albanian Prime Minister, regarding prisoner deportation agreements. The party leader said he would accept an invitation to visit Albania to discuss returning Albanian prisoners.
International Precedents
The proposals echo similar arrangements already in place across Europe and the Americas. Denmark signed a 10-year deal in 2022 to lease 300 cells in Kosovo’s Gjilan prison for €210 million, specifically for foreign nationals convicted in Danish courts who face deportation after serving their sentences.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has paid El Salvador $6 million to house migrants in the country’s notorious Terrorism Confinement Centre (CECOT), a facility that can hold up to 40,000 inmates under harsh conditions where prisoners have no outdoor access or visitation rights.
Farage acknowledged drawing inspiration from these international examples, stating: “We are borrowing from the Giuliani playbook unashamedly,” referring to former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s tough-on-crime approach in the 1990s. “What Rudy Giuliani did to New York in the 1990s was nothing short of a blooming miracle,” he said.
Reciprocal Arrangements
When questioned about implementation, Farage confirmed Reform would be prepared to accept British prisoners currently held abroad as part of reciprocal agreements. Of course we’re prepared to take British prisoners from other parts of the world,” he told reporters.
He warned that countries reluctant to accept their nationals back would face consequences: “We will make it very straightforward. We will end travel, end visa restrictions, so we have plenty of muscle to be able to do this.
Political Response
The proposals have drawn sharp criticism from across the political spectrum. Policing Minister Diana Johnson condemned Reform’s approach as “shameful,” saying: “If Nigel Farage was serious about making our streets safer, he should have backed the tough new laws we introduced earlier this year.”
Johnson accused Reform of undermining confidence in the police and criminal justice system, noting they had “voted to try to block measures to crack down on knife crime, antisocial behaviour, shop theft, child sexual abuse, and long overdue action to tackle the scourge of violence against women and girls.
Labour chairwoman Ellie Reeves dismissed the plans as “headline-chasing,” stating: “Reform is more interested in headline-chasing than serious policy-making in the interests of the British people.”
Shadow Environment Minister Robbie Moore from the Conservatives criticised the announcements as “headline politics” lacking detail, whilst Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp called it “crime fiction,” adding: “Their own document admits it is unfunded – which means they are not being honest about the price you will pay for their policies just like Labour.
Expert Criticism
Former chief inspector of prisons Nick Hardwick questioned the feasibility of the plans, telling Times Radio: “What he’s proposing will cost far, far more than he’s suggesting and secondly, I don’t actually think it will address the real concerns that people have got about crime.”
Broadcaster Andrew Neil was particularly critical of the foreign prison proposal, saying on Times Radio: “I don’t like his idea of sending prisoners to El Salvador, to some godforsaken hellhole,” calling it inhumane for a “civilised nation” like Britain.
Context and Timing
Farage’s announcement comes as Parliament prepares for its summer recess, with the Reform leader pledging Monday’s event marked the start of a six-week campaign on law and order. He cited a recent Survation poll showing 49 per cent of people believed the UK was “becoming a lawless country.”
The party leader described the current situation under Labour as “grim and serious,” saying the country was in “a real mess.” He argued: “There is nothing left wing or right wing about desperately wanting our society’s streets to be a lot safer than they are today.”
Farage estimated that halving crime would save Britain £17.4 billion over the course of a five-year parliament, insisting: “It’s not really a question of ‘can we afford to do this?’ It’s a question of ‘can we afford not to do this?'”
The proposals mark Reform UK’s latest attempt to position itself as the primary alternative to both Labour and the Conservatives on law and order issues, as the party continues to lead in some opinion polls ahead of the next general election.
Follow for more updates on Britannia Daily
Image Credit:
Nigel Farage – Image by Gage Skidmore, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
.jpg){kind=link}