Britain’s main opposition party on Sunday promised that, if it returned to power, it would deport 150,000 illegal immigrants each year by creating a new removals force with far-reaching powers, modeled on the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency in the United States.
Under the plans, announced by Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the Conservative Party, facial recognition technology would be used to track undocumented immigrants, the asylum system would be overhauled and Britain would leave an international human rights treaty.
“The fact is, there are too many people in our country who should not be here,” Ms. Badenoch told the BBC, adding that “they don’t belong here, they are committing crimes, they are hurting people.”
Ms. Badenoch made her pledge on the opening day of an annual conference that is seen as critical for her leadership of the party, which has sunk in opinion polls since she took over last November. Even if she steadies her position, the next general election could be as far off as 2029, making Ms. Badenoch unlikely to reach Downing Street any time soon.
The announcement reflects a hardening stance on migration and other issues in Britain, where the political debate has been influenced both by Nigel Farage, the leader of a populist anti-immigration party, Reform U.K., and by the policies of President Trump.
The center-left Labour government, led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, has responded to the shifting landscape by toughening its stance on immigration and taking a hard line on pro-Palestinian protests.
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The post Leader of U.K. Conservatives Vows to Deport 150,000 People a Year appeared first on New York Times.
