Nigel Farage said that, if Reform UK wins the next general election, his government would immediately detain and deport anyone who arrives in Britain without authorization, including families with children. He delivered the pledge at an August 26 press conference staged at Oxford Airport, describing irregular Channel arrivals as an “invasion” and warning that inaction risked “major civil disorder.” Farage said those intercepted at sea or on arrival would be held and removed and “never, ever allowed to stay,” framing the policy as the only way to end small-boat crossings.

Legal route and operational design

Farage outlined a legal program centered on withdrawing the United Kingdom from the European Convention on Human Rights, repealing the Human Rights Act, and “disapplying” other treaties that, he said, have been used to stop removals. Reform would also suspend application of the 1951 Refugee Convention for five years, under a plan he labeled “Operation Restoring Justice.” Senior party figure Zia Yusuf said the government would build capacity to detain as many as 24,000 people at any given time, using “surplus” military sites, with a stated program cost of £10 billion and claimed savings of £17 billion over five years. In parallel, Reform would seek return agreements with countries including Afghanistan, Eritrea, and Iran; Farage added that migrants intercepted on small boats would be detained and deported as a matter of policy.

Targets, numbers, and timelines

Reform’s stated objective is mass removals in the first term of a Reform-led government. Farage asked on stage whether removing “500,000 to 600,000” people within five years was feasible; Yusuf answered, “Totally.” Separate briefings from party figures and coverage of the event put the headline deportation target at roughly 600,000 over five years. The context cited alongside the pledge included record asylum figures and an increase in Channel crossings this year. Official statistics referenced in the reporting put asylum applications at more than 111,000 in the 12 months to June and small-boat arrivals at almost 29,000 so far in 2025, up about 50% from the same point a year earlier.

Polling, party position, and staging

Despite holding four of 650 seats in the House of Commons, Reform has used immigration as a focal point and, according to multiple national surveys cited in coverage, is level with or ahead of the governing and main opposition parties in stated voting intention. Farage’s announcement followed weeks of small protests outside hotels used to house asylum seekers, including a court-ordered removal of residents at a site in Epping that became a flashpoint. The press event itself was staged against a mock “departures” board and branded materials for Operation Restoring Justice, underscoring the party’s core message of detention followed by removal.

Government policy and immediate reactions

Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government has ended the previous administration’s Rwanda plan and is pursuing a returns arrangement with France—described in official messaging as a “one in, one out” approach for some small-boat arrivals—while also moving to speed asylum processing. Ministers criticized Reform’s package as unworkable and characterized elements as “gimmicks,” while rights groups said the plan would amount to abandoning human-rights commitments. In response to questions about Article 8 and broader treaty implications, a government spokesman argued that the European human-rights framework underpins major accords, including the Good Friday Agreement. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said parts of Reform’s platform “copy” existing Conservative proposals.

Key legal and diplomatic hurdles described by critics

Analysts and officials quoted in the reports pointed to multiple friction points a future government would have to address: the domestic legislative path to repealing the Human Rights Act; the process and consequences of leaving the ECHR; and the need for bilateral or multilateral readmission deals to carry out removals at scale. They also noted that the ECHR is woven into U.K. treaty practice. Asked about implications for Northern Ireland’s peace settlement, Farage said the agreement could be renegotiated, adding that it would take years. The party also floated backup options such as using British overseas territories for processing or returns, alongside third-country arrangements.

Treatment on arrival and stated handling of families

Farage said detention would apply to everyone who arrives without authorization, including women and children, while adding that “how we deal with children is much more complicated.” He maintained that detaining all new arrivals and swiftly deporting them would remove the incentive to cross. When pressed about the risk of harm if individuals are returned to countries they fled, he answered that the alternative is “to do nothing,” and that the U.K. “cannot be responsible for all the sins that take place around the world.”

Scale of removals and capacity claims

Reform’s internal costing and capacity estimates formed a prominent part of the presentation. Yusuf said the plan would create space for 24,000 detainees across repurposed military sites, arguing this footprint is adequate for a sustained removals pipeline. Farage’s team said detention would be immediate and universal for irregular arrivals; the party’s deportation target—hundreds of thousands over five years—was presented as achievable under the proposed legal changes and expanded infrastructure. Coverage emphasized that these are party claims; the government and opposition questioned feasibility and legality.

Opposition framing and political stakes

Government minister Matthew Pennycook called Reform’s proposals “a series of gimmicks,” citing the embedded role of the ECHR in U.K. and European frameworks. Labour figures said the announcement lacked practical and ethical detail, while the Conservatives argued that workable portions of Reform’s plan mirror their own published policies. Rights organizations condemned the package on humanitarian grounds. For Farage, the rollout sought to keep immigration at the center of the agenda during a period when polling shows the issue outranking the economy as voters’ top concern.

On the radar

The next indicators are straightforward: whether Reform’s polling lead persists as parties test arguments during Parliament’s return; whether the government’s France arrangement produces measurable returns; and whether legal commentary crystallizes around the mechanics and consequences of leaving the ECHR. On the operational side, watch for specifics on potential return agreements and for any government decisions on accommodation policy for asylum seekers, an issue that has intersected with local court cases and protests in recent weeks. For now, the party’s position is clear: end the legal frameworks it says block removals, build detention capacity, and deport at scale if it forms a government.