Shorouk Express
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Keir Starmer plans to send failed asylum seekers abroad in his latest bid to crackdown on illegal immigration and tackle the threat from Nigel Farage and Reform.
The prime minister announced he was in talks to create “return hubs” overseas for those who have exhausted their options to stay in the UK, a move which sparked criticism from Labour MPs, opposition parties and campaigners.
Critics compared the move to the Conservatives’ controversial Rwanda policy — just a year after Sir Keir ditched the scheme for being a “gimmick”.
But in a potential setback to the Labour leader’s plans, the Albanian PM insisted his country would not host a return hub for the UK, with the government unable to confirm where such hubs would be located or when they would open.
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Speaking during a joint press conference during a visit to Albania, Sir Keir said the UK was having “discussions (on) return hubs – which is where someone has been through the system in the UK, they need to be returned.”
While there was no “silver bullet” to solve the problem, the UK was in talks “with a number of countries” on what he said was “a really important innovation”.
But Edi Rama, Albania’s prime minister, swiftly ruled out being a host to the UK scheme. The country currently operates a similar programme with Italy.
“We have been asked by several countries if we were open to it, and we said no, because we are loyal to the marriage with Italy and the rest is just love,” he said, standing beside Sir Keir.
Other countries thought to be under consideration include Serbia, Bosnia and North Macedonia,
The government would not comment on which countries would be involved in the talks but Downing Street said the government is having “formal discussions with partners across Europe”.
The announcement comes amid rising pressure on the government after the number of people crossing the Channel in small boats passed 12,000 for the year, putting 2025 on course to be a record.
On Monday, the PM used a dramatic early morning press conference to unveil a new crackdown designed to curb rising migration numbers, saying the UK risked becoming “island of strangers”.
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But the move comes less than a year after the Labour government scrapped the Rwanda scheme, just days after entering office.
Unlike that policy, which have sent those seeking asylum on a one-way trip to the African country even if their claims were later successful, Sir Keir’s plans will only apply to failed asylum seekers.
Labour’s Diane Abbott compared the latest policy to Rwanda as she hit out at her government, saying on X: “We used to have the immoral and unworkable Tory policy of deportation to Rwanda. Now we have ‘return hubs’.”
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the plan was “weaker than the Rwanda plan and won’t work”, while her shadow home secretary Chris Philp claimed the PM’s trip had been an “embarrassment” after the Albanian leader his country would not house a return hub for the UK.
Charity Freedom from Torture warned that Sir Keir’s “return hubs” would lead to the same level of fear among migrants as the Tories’ Rwanda policy.
Director of advocacy Natasha Tsangarides said the Rwanda scheme “caused immeasurable harm to survivors of torture who lived in constant terror of being sent to a country they didn’t know and where they faced the risk of return to persecution”.
“Today, this announcement will be inspiring similar levels of fear amongst those currently seeking asylum in the UK,” she said.
Announcing the talks, No 10 said hubs would result in taxpayers spending less money on asylum accommodation.
But the plans have so far been unveiled with very little detail on how they will work in practice, how much money they would save and where people who have been removed would be housed.
Explaining the new push, the prime minister’s official spokesman also claimed failed asylum seekers are using “stalling tactics” to prevent deportation, accusing some of “losing their paperwork” and even “starting families” to delay action.
“The objective is to remove people who have exhausted all routes to staying in the UK and have no lawful basis to remain here”, he said of the “return hubs”.
“We have seen people in the past arriving from safe countries but then using stalling tactics such as losing their paperwork or starting a family to frustrate that removal”.
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Sir Keir admitted return hubs would not in themselves halt the boats but he said that, combined with other measures designed to tackle smuggling gangs and return those with no right to be in the UK, it would “allow us to bear down on this vile trade and make sure that we stop those people crossing the Channel”.
But Labour MP Rachael Maskell said: “Labour government, above all others, must recognise that many have fled tyranny to come to the UK and must uphold its international obligations while resetting its asylum system which provides the right interventions to help people secure their future in the most appropriate place and in the most appropriate way.”
Independent MP and former Labour shadow home secretary John McDonnell added: “Exacerbating the discussion of immigration by the use of extremist comment plays into the hands of Reform. The political naivety of this strategy is extraordinary.”
Steve Valdez-Symonds from Amnesty International said talk of “return hubs” was “a harmful distraction”. “Instead of constantly promoting the false narrative that the UK can outsource its obligations, the prime minister and home secretary must ensure everyone who seeks asylum here can have their claim dealt with fairly and efficiently.“
The latest developments come just days after the PM faced a backlash for warning the UK risks becoming “island of strangers”, after his language was compared to Enoch Powell’s infamous 1968 “rivers of blood” speech, which whipped up a frenzy of anti-immigrat hatred across the UK.
The government has been accused of attempting to pander to Mr Farage in its harder line stance on immigration after Reform UK took nearly 700 seats at the local elections after a surge in the polls.
Downing Street has said Albania being a possible return hub was “never planned as part of the discussions” between Sir Keir Starmer and his Albanian counterpart.
Sir Keir’s official spokesman said it was established before the Prime Minister’s trip that Albania would not be part of plans for the UK to have “return hubs” for failed asylum seekers in other countries.
