Home Office says nearly 60,000 people deported from UK or left voluntarily since 2024 election | Home Office
Nearly 60,000 unauthorized immigrants and convicted criminals have been removed or deported from the UK since Labor took office, the Home Office said.
The announcement comes amid claims the government is promoting “harmful stereotypes” by equating immigration with crime.
Officials said this figure was the highest in the last 10 years.
The department said 15,200 people who were in the UK illegally have been deported since the 2024 election, a 45% increase on the previous 19 months.
The statement said 43,000 people left the country voluntarily after being told they had arrived in the UK illegally. Deportations of foreign-born criminals increased by 32%; More than 8,700 people were deported during the Labor government.
The Home Office also released footage of a recent transfer flight in which detainees were taken with their faces blurred onto a plane bound for Eastern Europe.
The figures were released after Home Affairs Minister Shabana Mahmood said she would “increase” the number of deportations further.
Keir Starmer’s government, which came third behind Reform UK and the Tories in recent polls, has pledged to speed up deportations, end the use of asylum hotels and reduce the number of small boats taking people across the Channel.
More than 65,000 people have crossed the Channel to the UK since Starmer became prime minister.
The Home Office is preparing to introduce legislation to stop those facing possible suspensions for “gaming the system” by appealing against their dismissal, using the European convention on human rights.
The UK is one of several countries pushing for changes to the interpretation of the treaty, particularly the protection of Article 3 against inhuman or degrading treatment and the right to family life of Article 8.
Both articles were used to appeal deportation and expulsion decisions. The Ministry of Internal Affairs announced that unauthorized immigrants will also be limited to a single appeal method.
Mahmood said: “I promised to step up the removal of illegal immigrants, and we have done that. But we need to go further to remove those who have no right to live in our country. I will do whatever is necessary to restore order and control.”
The government has also pledged to end the use of hotels to house refugees by the end of parliament and instead use more basic accommodation such as military sites.
The government said fewer than 200 asylum accommodation hotels remained in use, down from a peak of 400 under the previous government.
Reacting to the Home Office announcement, Minnie Rahman, chief executive of immigration charity Praxis, said: “Many of those labeled ‘foreign-born criminals’ have lived most of their lives in the UK and have a legitimate right to be here.
“Yet the government continues to promote harmful and racist stereotypes that equate immigration with crime, even though it has still not implemented the key lessons from the lessons learned from Windrush review. This is unfair, divisive and deeply damaging.”
Griff Ferris, spokesman for the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants, said: “The government continues to perpetuate this persecution and violence in an increasingly desperate attempt to court the far right. It has gone too far down a very dark path and these announcements of mass deportations, which also seek to undermine the protection of rights, are frightening, alongside the home secretary’s use of openly fascist rhetoric.”
“Behind these numbers are real people whose lives have been shattered. We need a compassionate system that puts people first, where the same travel routes are accessible to everyone and the same quality, safe housing is available for everyone.”
Natasha Tsangarides, director of Freedom Against Torture, said: “Chipping away at Article 3 of the ECHR is a dangerous game that could trigger a domino effect around the world. Any attempt to erode Article 3 protections risks undermining our shared right to live a life free from torture and does the dirty work of oppressive regimes abroad. That’s not who we are as a country.”
