Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer proposes a new elite Border Security Command and pledges to end the Rwanda scheme, aiming to strengthen the UK’s approach against illegal immigration and people smuggling.
Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour Party leader, has proposed a strategy to tackle the issue of illegal immigration and people-smuggling across the Channel. In a speech in Kent, Starmer announced plans to establish an elite Border Security Command and redirect funding from the controversial Rwanda scheme to enhance border security measures. This initiative aims to utilize new counter-terrorism powers for stopping and searching at borders and enhanced financial investigations to dismantle organised immigration crime networks.
The Labour leader’s announcements come in the context of increasing small boat crossings, with over 8,800 migrants recorded so far this year. Starmer emphasized creating a hostile environment for people smugglers in Britain, describing their operations as exploitative criminal enterprises.
This policy proposal coincides with the political shift of Dover MP Natalie Elphicke, who recently defected from the Conservative Party to Labour, citing the government’s inadequate response to the small boats crisis as a primary reason. In response, Home Secretary James Cleverly has criticized these plans as potentially offering “amnesty for illegal immigrants.”
The debate on how to manage the UK’s border security and asylum system is intensifying amidst these political movements, with Labour suggesting a complete overhaul of the current measures and the Conservative government defending its strategies, which include the contentious Rwanda scheme.
Further political dynamics include the potential for additional defections from the Conservative Party to Labour, as indicated by Labour frontbencher Wes Streeting. This comes at a time when Labour is experiencing a rise in polls, suggesting increased public support following Elphicke’s defection. These developments suggest significant political and policy shifts related to immigration and border security issues in the UK.
