Nigel Farage doesn't believe Rwanda plan will stop migrants

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Mr Farage put pressure on the Prime Minister after 11 consecutive days in which no illegal Channel crossings were detected came to an abrupt end on May 1. The former Brexit Party leader, who has since joined GB News as a primetime host, penned a piece in the Daily Telegraph which suggested the Conservative Party could lose the Red Wall unless Brexit Britain leaves the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Conservative Eurosceptics, including Justice Secretary Dominic Raab, have previously touted replacing New Labour’s Human Rights Act, which incorporated the ECHR into UK law, with a British Bill of Rights.

Even the ex-Prime Minister Theresa May locked horns with Mr Farage over the issue after the then Home Secretary pledged to withdraw Britain from the ECHR but keep the UK in the Brussels bloc in 2016.

However, Farage pulled no punches on the Government’s new immigration strategy, which was signed with Rwanda last month.

The former MEP said: “Unless something changes drastically, it is now very likely that 100,000 people will cross the Channel in inflatable dinghies in 2022 in order to settle in Britain.

“To put that figure in perspective, towns like Becontree, Rochdale and Worcester each have about 100,000 inhabitants.

“It amazes me that any serious person could ever imagine that number of illegal immigrants arriving in such a short space of time is sustainable.”

Mr Farage has been covering the Channel crossings since April 2020, when he recorded videos for his 300,000 YouTube subscribers.

The treasurer of the right-wing populist party Reform UK even released footage on GB News on Monday which showed one migrant lobbing a mobile phone into the Channel.

Writing about what he saw, Mr Farage said: “Why would a genuine refugee do this?

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“And why would they deliberately arrive with no documentation or any other means of identification?

“These are questions to which I’ve never received satisfactory answers from those who seek to defend the rights of those who make this perilous journey.

“But we should all be worried about this trick – Boris Johnson in particular. His first duty is to protect British citizens.

“If just one of the thousands of young men arriving without documentation ever managed to threaten our national security, Johnson would have to resign.”

Mr Farage concluded: “The Rwanda flights had better start soon.

“Otherwise the Government is going to be overwhelmed by this crisis.

“There are one million households on the social housing list in the UK today – many of them in Red Wall seats.

“They cannot understand why Johnson isn’t doing more to help them.

“Sadly, it does seem the Rwanda policy is about to rebound on the Government.

“Having raised expectations on an issue that provokes strong emotions, it is now clear that nothing will happen for months.

“Several legal challenges have already been deposited.

“Unless Brexit is completed and we leave the European Convention on Human rights, the 100,000 number this year will be met – and with that, most of the Red Wall seats will be lost.”

Mr Farage’s intervention comes just hours after the Prime Minister vowed to defeat “liberal left lawyers” who have been tasked with scuppering the Government’s policy.

Mr Johnson said: “I am not going to pretend to you that it is going to be without legal challenges.

“I think I said that when I announced it. But we will get it done.”

The Government’s £120million plan will see illegal immigrants, including many of those who have crossed the Channel in small boats, travel 6,000 miles to east Africa.

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Immigration and asylum are considered major electoral issues for Mr Johnson’s Tory Party.

According to YouGov, 26 percent of Brits said immigration was the most important issue facing the country.

The figure is even higher among Conservative voters at 40 percent.

Polling experts at Ipsos also found the Government’s immigration policy had cut through in voters’ minds ahead of today’s local elections.

Two-thirds of voters identified the cost of living as a very important issue in deciding who to vote for.

But the UK Government’s policies for dealing with asylum seekers finished joint second with climate change after 47 percent of respondents identified both issues as very important.

Polling stations will open at 7am on Thursday May 5 and close at 10pm.

A total of 146 councils across England will go up for grabs, including in all 32 London boroughs.

Seven directly elected mayors will also be elected.

Scottish voters across all 32 council areas and Welsh voters in all 22 council areas will also head to the polls.

Northern Ireland’s devolved election to Stormont will also take place.

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