LONDON: The leader of Britain’s anti-migration Reform UK party, Nigel Farage, announced a plan on Tuesday to repeal human rights laws to allow for mass deportations of asylum seekers and reverse what he called an “invasion” that threatened national security.
Farage said his party, which is leading in national opinion polls, would remove Britain from the European Convention on Human Rights, repeal the Human Rights Act and disapply other international treaties that have been used to block the forced deportation of asylum seekers.
“The mood in the country around this issue is a mix between total despair and rising anger,” Farage said at a press conference. “It is an invasion, as these young men illegally break into our country.”
The announcement comes against the backdrop of sustained, small-scale protests in recent weeks outside hotels housing asylum seekers, in response to concerns about public safety after some individuals were charged with sexual assault.
Opinion polls show that immigration has overtaken the economy as British voters’ biggest concern. Reform UK – which has just four members of parliament but is ahead in every survey of voting intentions – is putting Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer under growing pressure to tackle the issue.
In 2024, Britain received a record 108,100 asylum applicants, almost 20 percent more than a year earlier. Individuals from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and Bangladesh made up the largest number of applicants for asylum last year.
Much of the focus has been on those who arrive on small boats across the Channel, with record numbers arriving this year.
Starmer’s government and its predecessors have been wrestling for years with how to deal with undocumented migrants entering the country.
The plans by Reform are the most radical yet and would involve signing deals with Afghanistan, Eritrea and other countries to repatriate their nationals who arrived in Britain illegally.
Without action, Farage said “anger will grow, in fact I think there is now, as a result of this, a genuine threat to public order, and that is the very last thing we want.”
Starmer’s government has a plan to “smash” the gangs which smuggle people to Britain by reforming the asylum appeals process and hiring more enforcement officials.
The previous Conservative government planned to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda, but the policy was ruled unlawful by Britain’s top court.
UK’s Farage unveils plan to repeal rights laws and deport asylum seekers
https://arab.news/9fxn4
UK’s Farage unveils plan to repeal rights laws and deport asylum seekers
- Nigel Farage said his party, which is leading in national opinion polls, would remove Britain from the European Convention on Human Rights
Pope criticizes prison overcrowding during special Mass for inmates, guards and families
- Leo recalled that visit in Sunday’s homily, as well as Francis’ Holy Year appeal for governments around the world to offer prison amnesties and pardons
ROME: Pope Leo XIV criticized prison overcrowding and insufficient inmate rehabilitation programs on Sunday as he celebrated a special Mass for detainees, guards and their families in the final event of the Vatican’s 2025 Holy Year.
The Vatican said an estimated 6,000 people signed up to participate in the weekend pilgrimage, including representatives from big detention facilities in Italy and prison volunteers, wardens and prison chaplains from 90 countries.
Included were a few groups of inmates who received special permission to participate, according to the Italian penitentiary chaplain’s association.
In his homily, Leo acknowledged the oftentimes poor conditions prisoners face even in wealthier countries. He called for a sense of charity and forgiveness to prevail for prisoners and those responsible for guarding them.
“Here, we can mention overcrowding, insufficient commitment to guarantee stable educational programs for rehabilitation and job opportunities,” he said, adding that patience and forgiveness are needed.
“On a more personal level, let us not forget the weight of the past, the wounds to be healed in body and heart, the disappointments, the infinite patience that is needed with oneself and with others when embarking on paths of conversion, and the temptation to give up or to no longer forgive,” he said.
As the last big event of the 2025 Jubilee, the Mass in many ways closed out the Holy Year that Pope Francis inaugurated Christmas Eve 2024, which had as its main thrust transmitting a message of hope especially for those on society’s margins.
During his 12-year pontificate, Francis had prioritized ministering to prisoners to offer them hope for a better future. On Dec. 26 last year Francis traveled to Rome’s Rebibbia prison to open its Holy Door and include the inmates in the Jubilee celebrations.
Leo recalled that visit in Sunday’s homily, as well as Francis’ Holy Year appeal for governments around the world to offer prison amnesties and pardons, which are a mainstay of the Catholic Church’s Jubilee tradition.
In Italy, prison overcrowding is a longstanding problem that has been denounced by the European Court of Human Rights and humanitarian organizations.
Antigone, an Italian prisoner advocacy group, said Italian prisons are now at 135 percent overcapacity, with more than 63,000 people detained in facilities with fewer than 47,000 beds. Italian prison authorities received 5,837 complaints of inhuman or degrading treatment last year, 23.4 percent more than in the previous year, Antigone said.
The Mass was the final big Jubilee event of the 2025 Holy Year, which Leo will officially close out on Jan. 6 when he shuts the Holy Door of St. Peter’s.
