Nigel Farage today warned that anger among Britons over the small boats crisis represents a “genuine threat to public order” as he revealed his party’s controversial plans for mass deportations of asylum seekers.
The Reform UK leader, speaking at London Oxford Airport in Oxfordshire this morning, unveiled his party’s “Operation Restoring Justice” proposals, vowing to stop what he called an “invasion” across the Channel through a policy of detaining and deporting “absolutely anyone” who arrives illegally.
The hardline plans would see all those arriving in Britain on small boats and via other illegal routes detained and then deported, with Mr Farage claiming some 600,000 asylum seekers could be removed in the first five years of a Reform government.
Warning of Rising Anger
In stark language, the Reform leader warned that public frustration had reached dangerous levels. The mood in the country around this issue is a mix between total despair and rising anger,” Mr Farage said during his speech.
He added: “And I would say this, that without action, without somehow the contract between the Government and the people being renewed, without some trust coming back, then I fear deeply that that anger will grow.”
“In fact, I think there is now, as a result of this, a genuine threat to public order.”
Women and Children Included
Mr Farage confirmed that women and children would be among those detained under his party’s plans, while he appeared unfazed by the prospect of failed asylum seekers facing torture or murder if deported after entering the UK illegally.
Reform is pledging to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and scrap the Human Rights Act, which enshrines the convention in UK law. The party promises to replace it with a “British Bill of Rights” that would remove barriers to deportation.
The proposals include signing migrant returns deals with countries such as Afghanistan and Eritrea, whilst also housing migrants in “third countries” such as Rwanda and Albania. Under Reform’s plans, British overseas territories such as Ascension Island would be used as a “fallback” option for sending migrants.
Accusations of ‘Collusion’
Mr Farage accused the UK and French governments of “colluding” in support of criminal activity by failing to tackle people-smuggling gangs operating across the Channel.
“Despite the £800million (approximately $1 billion) we’ve given the French, even as we speak, there are French naval vessels escorting these boats across to a 12-mile line,” the Reform leader claimed.
He continued: “From there they will be picked up by Border Force or our volunteers at the RNLI if it’s a busy day and Border Force simply can’t cope.”
“And now what happens is the French give them all life jackets and when they’re picked up by Border Force, Border Force give the life jackets back to the French so they can re-use them on the next journey,” Mr Farage added. “We are literally witnessing two governments colluding in their support of criminal activity.”
Record Numbers Under Labour
Mr Farage highlighted how 650 people arrived in Dover on Bank Holiday Monday, with the number of small boat arrivals soon to hit 52,000 since Sir Keir Starmer became Prime Minister in July 2024. This represents a significant increase from the same period under the previous Conservative government.
Home Office data shows that 50,271 small-boat migrants arrived between 5 July 2024 and mid-August 2025, compared to 36,346 during the equivalent period when the Conservatives were in power.
The Reform leader warned the Channel migrant crisis represented a “national security threat”, while he also said there were “cultural” reasons behind public anger over illegal arrivals.
Cultural Concerns
Recent weeks have seen protests outside asylum hotels across Britain, including at the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, where demonstrations began in July following an incident involving an asylum seeker charged with allegedly attempting to kiss a 14-year-old girl.
Mr Farage said: “I suppose the growing anger in the country in the course of the last few weeks is a cultural one. In the sense that many of these young men come from countries in which women aren’t even second-class citizens.”
“And frankly the public have now just had enough. What began as a protest of mothers and concerned citizens outside the Bell Hotel in Epping has now spread right across the country.”
He posed a stark question: “All of it really poses one big fundamental question. Whose side are you on? Are you on the side of women and children being safe on our streets? Or are you on the side of outdated international treaties backed up by a series of dubious courts?
Detention and Deportation Plans
Under Reform’s proposals, illegal migrants would be held in detention centres on “surplus” RAF bases while awaiting deportation. The party says it would build detention centres capable of holding 24,000 people within 18 months.
As many as five charter flights would leave the country every day, potentially deporting hundreds of thousands of migrants. Reform would also introduce a “voluntary deportation” scheme, offering migrants £2,500 (approximately $3,250) to leave the country using a tracking app.
The plans would cost an estimated £10 billion (approximately $13 billion) over a five-year period, which Reform says is roughly the same expenditure percentage as in the United States.
Saving Billions
Mr Farage claimed the plans would save “tens and possibly hundreds of billions of pounds” for UK taxpayers by ending hotel accommodation costs and other asylum-related expenses.
“Our proposals will save over the course of the next decades tens and possibly even hundreds of billions of pounds,” the Reform leader said. “By the end of a first parliament, we will have saved a huge amount of money.”
He added confidently: “The only way we will stop the boats is by detaining and deporting absolutely anyone that comes via that route. And if we do that, the boats will stop coming within days, because there will be no incentive to pay a trafficker to get into this country.
“If you come to the UK illegally, you will be detained and deported and never, ever allowed to stay, period. That is our big message from today.”
Legal Challenges Expected
Former attorney general Dominic Grieve warned that British common law could still block these plans, even without international treaties. He stated: “You still can’t rule out that a court might – in the case of somebody where it was quite clear they were going to be deported, in circumstances where their lives would be seriously at risk in their home country – intervene to stop deportation under customary law or even the common law.
The announcement comes amid a growing national movement against mass migration, with thousands protesting outside migrant hotels. Reform has vowed to use its power in the 12 local councils it controls to launch legal challenges to shut down migrant hotels in their constituencies.
The High Court recently granted Epping Forest District Council an interim injunction preventing the use of the Bell Hotel for asylum accommodation, requiring all 138 asylum seekers to leave by 12 September 2025. The Home Office has announced it will appeal the decision.
Mr Farage warned that asylum hotels “are a symbol of all that is wrong, all that is unfair. And, increasingly, it’s a big security risk.”
The Reform leader’s proposals represent the most hardline immigration stance of any mainstream British party, as public frustration over the small boats crisis continues to grow amid record arrival numbers.
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Image Credit (Shortened):
Nigel Farage at Reform UK rally in Trago Mills, Devon (June 2024) – by Owain.davies, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
