The deputy leader of Reform UK has revealed how his party would deal with France if they were ever to implement their plan to deal with the surge of small boats coming into Britain.
Richard Tice told Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips that the UK could have a ‘friendly standoff’ with the French, but was quick to remove ‘war’ from the equation.
Speaking to Trevor Phillips yesterday about what he described as the Labour government’s failure to ‘smash the gangs’, Mr Tice said: ‘It’s very simple. The government’s policy of smashing the gangs is clearly not working, and sadly people are literally dying… The only way to stop the boats is a variant of what Australia did.
‘We’ve talked about it before. I will repeat it again: You’ve got to safely pick up and take back to France, which we are legally entitled to do under the 1982 UN Convention of the Law of [the] Sea.
‘And by the way, France has a legal obligation to do the same, which they are in breach of. So we are legally entitled to do this.
‘If the French coastguards say “you’re not coming in” they’re in breach of international law.’
Richard Tice told Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips that the UK could have a ‘friendly standoff’ with the French
Border Force officials escort migrants into Dover Docks in Kent, United Kingdom on October 25, 2024
When Mr Tice was asked about how he would deal with the possibility of France refusing to take migrants back, he said: ‘Well then we’ve got a stand-off… I’m not saying go to war but you can have a friendly stand-off with friends.
‘It’s the only way you’re going to stop the deaths. Ours is the kind and compassionate policy.’
The Reform UK deputy leader’s comments come as it was revealed Labour may open more asylum hotels in the wake of new fears they will run out of spaces soon.
Demand for families has soared as nearly 150,000 migrants have crossed over the last six years.
As of June, almost 30,000 migrants were situated in over 250, costing the taxpayer £4.2million daily.
While no number on the new amount of asylum hotels have been confirmed, a Home Office source has told the Times, more are coming in the ‘days and weeks’.
However the insider did claim the number was less than that outlined by the Conservatives prior to Labour’s loveless landslide in the 2024 general election.
A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, from a Border Force vessel following a small boat incident in the Channel on October 15, 2024
Border Force officials escort migrants into Dover Docks in Kent, United Kingdom on October 25, 2024
‘When we entered government and even before, during access talks, we were told that the previous government had been drawing up plans to open scores of new asylum hotels,’ the source told the Times.
‘This was because the number of migrants crossing the Channel had increased by 18 per cent in the first half of the year and they had not been processing any new claims.’
Ministers are developing contingency plans to avoid a recurrence of the autumn 2022 situation, where the Manston asylum centre in Kent became dangerously overcrowded, resulting in disease and violence due to insufficient ‘upstream accommodation’ for migrants after their processing.
Yvette Cooper is optimistic that the Home Office will process the 87,217 claims pending initial decisions within a year to a year and a half by enhancing the decision-making rate.
There are currently an additional 137,525 waiting to hear back about their appeals or individuals waiting to be removed from the UK.
A total of 28,645 people are now believed to have crossed the Channel this year alone as of Friday, almost eight per cent higher when compared to the same point last year.
A large group of migrants attempting to cross the Channel are seen on a small boat yesterday
At least 55 people have died making the crossing in what has been described as the deadliest year for crossing so far.
A Home Office spokesperson said: ‘This government inherited an asylum system under unprecedented strain, with thousands stuck in a backlog without their claims processed.
‘We have taken immediate action to restart asylum processing which will save an estimated £7 billion for the tax payer over the next ten years, and are delivering a major uplift in returns to remove people with no right to be in the UK.
‘Over the long term this will reduce our reliance on hotels and costs of accommodation.
‘We remain absolutely committed to ending the use of hotels for asylum seekers and continue to identify a range of accommodation options to minimise their use.’
Almost 300 migrants crossed the Channel on the same day three people tragically died and dozens were rescued whilst making the risky journey last week.
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