5 days ago
Minister can't guarantee that murderers or rapists will spend any time in prison under ‘deport now, appeal later' scheme
The government cannot guarantee murderers or rapists would spend a single day in prison in their country of origin if they are removed from the UK under its 'deport now, appeal later' scheme.
The scheme, which sees foreign criminals deported before their appeals have been heard, has been expanded to include offenders from another 15 countries including India, Bulgaria and Australia, bringing the total to 23 countries.
The scheme allows the UK to deport offenders who have had a human rights claim against their removal rejected, with any appeals heard from abroad over a video link.
But asked whether it is guaranteed that offenders will be deported into a prison in their home country, rather than just released, victims minister Alex Davies-Jones told Sky News: 'All of the information will be given to their country of origin. But ultimately, it is up to that country of origin what they do with that individual.'
She added: 'What is important is that they will not be costing the taxpayer £54,000, which is what it costs to house a prisoner here in England and Wales. And they will not be taking up space in our prisons, which we desperately need.'
Asked what her message to victims would be, Ms Davies-Jones said: 'They will be deported to their country of origin, with no right to ever return to this country, keeping that victim safe and secure in the knowledge that they can never return.
'And also they're not costing that victim through their hard earned taxpayers money, the cost of staying in a prison in England.'
Announcing plans to expand the scheme over the weekend, home secretary Yvette Cooper said foreign criminals had been 'exploiting' the immigration system by 'remaining in the UK for months or even years while their appeals drag on'.
She said: 'That has to end. Those who commit crimes in our country cannot be allowed to manipulate the system, which is why we are restoring control and sending a clear message that our laws must be respected and will be enforced.'
The other countries now in the scheme are Angola, Botswana, Brunei, Canada, Guyana, Indonesia, Kenya, Latvia, Lebanon, Malaysia, Uganda and Zambia.
The Home Office said the expansion of 'deport now, appeal later' would help 'scale up' the country's ability to remove foreign criminals, alongside measures announced on Sunday to deport offenders as soon as they are sentenced.
Justice secretary Shabana Mahmood said the move, which requires parliamentary approval, would save £54,000 a year per prison place.
It comes as the government ramps up its efforts to bring down migration amid growing public anger over the issue.
Last week it was announced that the government's new 'one in, one out' returns deal was up and running, with the first migrants who arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel being detained on Thursday.
The agreement, announced by the prime minister in a joint press conference with Emmanuel Macron last month, means that any adult migrant who crosses the Channel will now be at risk of return if their claim for asylum is considered inadmissible.
The government is hoping the new scheme will turn the tide on the numbers of people arriving in the UK after crossing the Channel, amid mounting tensions over the issue in recent days and protests across the UK.
Since Labour came to power last year, almost 5,200 foreign offenders have been deported, representing a 14 per cent increase on the previous 12 months.
Officials have said increasing deportations will help ease pressure on overcrowded prisons.
But figures from the Ministry of Justice from the end of June suggest there are currently just 772 prisoners from the 15 new countries covered by 'deport now, appeal later'.
Of the new countries, only Indians are in the top nationalities among current prisoners, while there are no offenders from Botswana or Brunei currently behind bars.
The 'deport now, appeal later' scheme for human rights claims was introduced in 2014 but was ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court three years later in cases where deportation would prevent the offender from giving live evidence in their appeal.
But the court noted that giving evidence over a video link could be sufficient, provided it was financially and logistically possible, in effect limiting the policy to countries where video appeal facilities were realistically available.
The UK currently has arrangements for video appeals with eight countries, including Tanzania, Belize, Finland and Estonia.
While the Tories said the scheme is a 'step in the right direction', shadow home secretary Chris Philp said it is only a 'drop in the ocean' compared to 'record numbers of illegal arrivals'.
'Until Keir Starmer either commits to deporting all foreign criminals or stops rolling out the red carpet for migrants the world over, this problem is not going away', he added.
