'We will send you packing': Govt vows to deport foreign criminals immediately after sentencing
The law change proposed by Shabana Mahmood could save taxpayers an average of £54,000 a year per prison place.
The changes would apply to prisoners serving fixed-term "determinate" sentences.
Authorities would also retain their power not to deport a criminal but instead keep them in custody - with examples including if an offender is planning further crimes against the UK's interests or national security.
The justice secretary's announcement goes further than a change to the law in June - expected to come into force in September - meaning prisoners face deportation rather than the current 50%.
The government will need parliament to greenlight its proposal to bring this down to 0%.
Foreign national offenders make up around 12% of the prison population.
Ms Mahmood said: "Our message is clear - if you abuse our hospitality and break our laws, we will send you packing."
She added: "Deportations are up under this government, and with this new law they will happen earlier than ever before."
Almost 5,200 foreign national offenders have been deported since July 2024, a 14% increase on the 12 months prior, according to the government.
Read more:
According to a Labour source, the previous Conservative government relied on prison transfer agreements with other countries to deport foreign national offenders, in deals which allow inmates to serve their custodial sentence in their "home" country.
This saw 945 prisoners sent to jails abroad between 2010 and 2023, equal to fewer than two criminals per week.
Conservative shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said: "In Starmer's topsy-turvy world, investors are fleeing the country in their droves while record numbers of violent and sexual offenders from abroad are put up in our prisons. It's a farce.
"Yet again Starmer has refused to confront our broken human rights laws.
"He needs to grow a backbone and change them so we can actually deport these individuals.
"The safety of the British public is infinitely more important than the 'rights' of sick foreign criminals.
"If countries won't take back their nationals, Starmer should suspend visas and foreign aid. His soft-touch approach isn't working."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
The village ‘ripped apart' by scrapped HS2 line – while taxpayers foot bill for empty homes
A 'jewel' village has been ripped apart by scrapped plans for an HS2 line, locals claim, as it emerged that taxpayers were footing a seven-figure annual bill to guard properties left empty by the overall project. Some 35 of the 50 homes in Whitmore Heath were bought on behalf of the government from residents wanting to sell amid plans for a huge tunnel beneath the hillside hamlet for the high-speed rail link from London to Manchester. But as the properties - many of them lavish mansions with large gardens - were sold off, delays and spiralling costs placed the section of line through Staffordshire in doubt, until, in October 2023, it was axed. 'It destroyed the community,' said Graham Hutton, who lives two miles away and fought against the line, which would have gone from Handsacre in Staffordshire to Manchester, being built. 'The village was an affluent place where people who made their money went to live. But the plans for HS2 made them want to leave, and then their homes were rented out or left empty.' Residents say one home was turned into a cannabis factory, while others judged to be unsuitable to rent remain gated up with 24/7 security teams hired to guard them. The story in Whitmore Heath is a snapshot of the situation along the initial route, which, as well as reaching Manchester on a western leg, was also planned to connect London and Birmingham with Leeds. Only the line from London to Handsacre in Staffordshire, including Birmingham, will now be built. In total, HS2 spent £3.7bn on buying up 1,727 properties on behalf of the Department for Transport (DfT), including £633m on 1,021 properties along the axed routes. They were bought under a range of schemes, including a voluntary purchase and a 'need to sell', where the seller had to provide a compelling reason to move after being unable to sell on the open market. Some were purchased under compulsory purchase orders (CPO). But around a quarter of the purchased properties - around 430 - are empty, with security teams required to protect some of them. Data obtained by The Independent revealed £1.9m was spent on guarding the properties in 2023-2024, the equivalent of £37,000 a week. In Staffordshire, £481,000 was spent. 'What a waste, an absolute waste of money,' said county councillor Paul Northcott. 'We need a resolution now so we can sell those properties to people they bought from, or back on the market - let's get the community back together again.' 'Whitmore Heath was the jewel of the area, but the community has been fragmented, it's been ripped apart by people coming in and going, people renting short-term. 'Villagers are downbeat, they feel like they are in limbo.' Parish councillor Ian Webb said the situation was 'far from ideal'. He added: 'I know several homes that have been left empty for a very long time.' Uncertainty is not helped by the maintenance of safeguards to stop the land from being developed in a way that would conflict with future schemes, with a cheaper high-speed alternative proposed last year. Among those waiting is Edward Cavenagh-Mainwaring, who lost around 250 acres of his family farm in Staffordshire through a CPO for HS2. But like others in the area, he now fears the amount offered was below the market rate, and if the opportunity comes, he will not be able to afford to buy back the land. 'A lot of people have been left mentally hurt,' he previously told The Independent. Last month, the restriction on selling land was lifted for the eastern leg between Birmingham and Leeds, which was cancelled in November 2021. The DfT said an update on safeguarding of the western leg line area will be given in due course alongside proposals for rail routes in the North of England. A spokesperson for HS2 Ltd said: 'HS2 Ltd has a responsibility for the safety and security of all land and property acquired to build the railway. 'More than 1,700 properties are currently managed by the company across the route – including those on the former Phase 2 leg – and it is in the best interests of local communities, project delivery and the taxpayer that they are kept safe and well maintained.' Last month, transport secretary Heidi Alexander said her department was working with HS2 Ltd to 'reset' the project after 'years of mismanagement, flawed reporting and ineffective oversight'. She said there was 'no route' to meet the target date of having HS2 services running by 2033.
New York Times
11 minutes ago
- New York Times
Crystal Palace, UEFA and CAS: What now for the club, the manager and players?
Three months after winning the FA Cup, Crystal Palace finally know which European competition they will play in this season. Confirmation came just before 11:30am on Monday morning, but it was not good news. Palace will be in the Conference League. After UEFA's Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) ruled Palace were in breach of multi-club rules and demoted them from the Europa League, for which they had qualified courtesy of that FA Cup win, the club appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). But after a hearing last Friday, CAS communicated on Monday that they had upheld the original decision. Advertisement With that news came anger and fury from the Palace supporters, and bitter disappointment for those at the club. The initial decision had felt, chairman Steve Parish said, 'a terrible injustice'. This, too, will feel that way. Less than 24 hours earlier, they had celebrated winning a second trophy in three months after defeating Liverpool in the Community Shield at Wembley. This was a brutal return to earth with a bump. Regardless, the ramifications of the UEFA and CAS rulings could be far-reaching across the club. First, it's worth clinging to a small positive. While they will not be admitted to the Europa League, it should not be forgotten that Palace will still be embarking upon their first campaign in European competition. Amid all the understandable doom and gloom and disappointment, that is a small chink of light for all involved. They have not yet given up on this case, either. Not necessarily in the hope they could yet secure a reprieve and a return to UEFA's second competition, but they might explore suing their former major shareholder, John Textor, who has since sold Eagle Football's 43 per cent stake in the club to Woody Johnson. If that were to happen, they would seek to recoup their extensive legal costs and look to claim damages for the difference in prize money between the Europa League and Conference League. Roughly speaking, the overall prize pot for teams competing in the Conference League (€285m; $330m) is around half that of clubs in the Europa League (€565m). It should also be noted that Palace would have qualified automatically for the group stage of the Europa League. By dropping down into the Conference League, they must now beat either the Norwegian side Fredrikstad or Denmark's Midtjylland — currently going head-to-head to reach the Europa League — in the Conference League play-off round to reach the group stage. Their opponents are likely to be Fredrikstad, who are 3-1 down from their home leg. Their point of contention is primarily that Textor did not act when UEFA's email was received by Lyon and missed by Palace. Had he done so, Palace argue, he could have placed his shares into a blind trust ahead of the designated deadline of March 1, and both sides would be competing in the Europa League. Advertisement Textor is relaxed about any legal action that may come his way, but, regardless of the success, it demonstrates the strength of feeling around the situation and reiterates that sense that everyone around this situation feels as if they have been wronged. 'I remain stunned by UEFA's decision to ignore all of the evidence and the on-pitch result to demote Crystal Palace from the Europa League,' he told The Athletic. 'The rule is clear: a (blind) trust is only needed if there is decisive influence. If I had decisive influence, then you would have already seen Eagle Football players on the ground at Selhurst Park, but after four years of ownership, there is not one example of multi-club collaboration on the Palace roster. 'Unfortunately, the insanity at UEFA will be resolved, and we will come to learn of their remedy as the 'Crystal Palace rule' in 2026, but that will be tragically late for a community that deserves better.' That the final outcome came after winning the Community Shield is all the more galling. UEFA's ruling was delivered two months after the FA Cup victory — a period that should have been one of celebration, but which became sullied by the anxious realisation that there could be an issue just days after that success. Palace deserved to have been able to enjoy their outstanding achievements for longer and without the next chapter being shaped by decisions made in a courtroom rather than on the pitch. There is also a sense of deja vu to all this. After finishing third in the top flight in 1990-91, they were denied what they thought would be a UEFA Cup place in the final weeks of the campaign. English clubs had been banned from European competition following the Heysel disaster in 1985, with Liverpool handed an extended ban. However, Liverpool's ban was lifted a few weeks before the end of the campaign, meaning Palace missed out. Advertisement This time they will compete in a lesser competition than the one they had anticipated — if they emerge successfully through the qualifier — but it is still almost as agonising. Palace will, eventually, seek to draw a line under this saga, however hard that may be, and move on with Johnson as the fourth principal owner, and look to be strong on the pitch across four competitions. For some of Palace's key players who have been in demand this summer, playing in a third-tier European competition may not be especially attractive. Striker Jean-Philippe Mateta in particular is eager to play in the Champions League, while it could now prove more difficult to keep hold of Eberechi Eze and captain Marc Guehi, both of whom are likely to feel they should be showcasing their talents in Europe's most prestigious competition. Glasner did not rule out the departure of either player this summer in his pre-match Community Shield press conference, while Parish conceded after the game that they might have to sell Guehi, who is out of contract next summer. The CAS ruling will not help their cause in that respect. 'We'd have to,' Parish said when asked if they would sell Guehi should an acceptable offer be made. 'For players of that calibre to leave on a free, it's a problem. We had one bid (last summer), but Joachim (Andersen) went (to Fulham instead) and we couldn't afford to lose both defenders. 'We had another bid in January, but that was a difficult situation as well. The player had a point of view on that one. We'll have to see what happens, but it needs a new contract or a conclusion of some kind.' That said, no Palace player has as yet walked into the club and demanded a move on the back of the CAS decision. Palace would play an additional six games, guaranteed, if they emerge through their Conference League play-off fixture, but travel is likely to be more onerous, with trips to distant parts of Europe due to the calibre of teams involved. Chelsea, last year's winners, took an inexperienced squad to Almaty, Kazakhstan, last December for a group game against Astana in the competition. But even they found recovery time and performances affected back in the Premier League. Palace, in contrast, boast a far thinner squad, and the extra travelling may put significant extra pressure on their Premier League performances. If they enjoy a run deep into the Conference League, which is plausible, that additional load will surely take its toll. Glasner has called for at least two more signings after a 'passive' window, and, while he is content to work with a smaller squad, it does feel as though Palace require further reinforcements to provide proper strength in depth — and should any important players leave, then it will become even more essential. Advertisement 'It helps if players are in early when you start pre-season because you have time to train,' Glasner said on Friday. 'After this, training has more or less stopped, and it's just games. It makes it harder to integrate players. This is what we missed (by not making early signings). But I never complain, it's in the past, I can't complain. 'We definitely need two more players. One at the back, one in attack. We have good numbers, good quality, good competition. Challenging players for the top level is what we need.' Palace's transfer activity has been hindered by all the uncertainty this summer. Prospective signings would have sought clarity and certainty before committing. Their financial position is also awkward, with Parish saying the club is still paying off transfer fees for players signed in previous seasons, cautioning against lofty expectations for a host of new arrivals as a result. It seems clear that Glasner will have to work with only a small number of additions to his existing squad. 'If we had four more players, I don't know what we could achieve, but it's not as simple as that,' Parish said. 'We have a lot of outgoings this year because we're paying a lot of transfer fees for players we already have. We'll do whatever we can. 'At some point, you have to recycle your squad or you're pushing off problems. We'll do everything we can in the next few weeks to give ourselves the best chance. I'm aware we're in four competitions and it's not going to be easy. 'Maybe Ismaila (Sarr) will go to the Africa Cup of Nations (in December). We're trying to cope with all those things. But the amount of money we have isn't infinite.' Glasner's approach to management is focused. He tries to stay in the moment and avoids looking too far back or ahead, preferring instead to scrutinise variables he and his team can control. That will be the way forward for him now. There will no doubt be disappointment, particularly given he won the Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022. He has a track record in that competition, but he is extremely ambitious and has belief in his staff and his players. His mindset will now be on trying to win the Conference League and improve on last season's 12th-placed Premier League finish. It may be more challenging now for Palace to convince players to join, particularly if they are competing for those players with teams in better competitions. But there are still draws, with Glasner as good a sales pitch as any, and the excellent spirit within the dressing room that has been cultivated since his arrival. Advertisement Given that Palace are generally targeting younger talents with a view to developing them, that calibre of player may still be enticed by the opportunity to compete in Europe, even if it is in the Conference League. Despite the disappointment, Palace will be one of the strongest teams in the Conference League and among the favourites to win it. To go all the way, lift another trophy, and qualify for the 2026-27 Europa League would be the perfect response to being denied what they believe was their rightful place. Nothing, surely, would stand in their way. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
Yahoo
38 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Burglar who sexually assaulted woman jailed
A burglar who sexually assaulted a woman and stole thousands of pounds of items during numerous burglaries has been jailed. Nooran Nagra broke into two properties in Nottingham in the space of three days in April 2024 before making off with high-value goods. The 35-year-old also sexually abused a vulnerable woman in his car in September 2022, Nottinghamshire Police said. He was jailed for four-and-a-half years at Nottingham Crown Court on Friday. Nagra, formerly of Austen Avenue in Nottingham, had denied the charge of sexual assault but was found guilty by a jury earlier this year. While awaiting his trial, he climbed through a house window in Noel Street, Forest Fields, on 15 April, before breaking a door to get inside a property in Duke Street, Basford, on 17 April. On both occasions, he ransacked the properties and made off with high-value electronics, including a television, PlayStation 5, smart phones, a laptop and speakers, police said. The value of the items taken by Nagra totalled around £6,700. He also stole bank cards, which he then used fraudulently to pay for items at shops nearby. Detectives forensically linked Nagra to the Noel Street break-in from multiple fingerprints he left at the scene, while CCTV footage identified him as the Duke Street intruder. Nagra pleaded guilty to the two counts of burglary and three counts of fraud by false representation. High-speed pursuit In addition, he also stole a car and led police on a dangerous high-speed pursuit through Kent while he was under the influence of cocaine in October 2023. He would go on to plead guilty to dangerous driving, theft of a motor vehicle, drug-driving, going equipped for theft and other driving offences. Nagra was additionally made subject of a lifelong sexual harm prevention order limiting his contact with anyone deemed vulnerable. He was also disqualified from driving for 47 months and will then need to complete an extended retest before being allowed to drive again. Det Con Tim Townsend said: "In the space of just over a year-and-a-half, he sexually assaulted a vulnerable woman, burgled two homes, stole a car and used it while under the influence of drugs to lead police on a dangerous pursuit. "Nagra is a man who deserves the custodial sentence that has just been issued to him, so we're pleased to see he's now behind bars." Follow BBC Nottingham on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@ or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210. Related internet links HM Courts & Tribunals Service Nottinghamshire Police
