Article Starmer must find workable plan to ‘stop the boats’ or Farage becomes prime minister

[C C]

https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/asy...13019.html

EXCERPTS: Nigel Farage’s plan for the mass deportation of asylum seekers is still unrealistic. His advisers have given it more thought than the previous plan, which was to pick up people on small boats and take them back to France.

[...] Farage’s plan now is ... to send them Somewhere Else. ... “Somewhere Else” includes countries such as Afghanistan and Eritrea...

Farage’s plan doesn’t even seem to convince him, because he has not one but two back-up plans, presumably in case public servants refuse to carry out instructions that may be unlawful in common law. He is “open to” reviving the Rwanda scheme, and also suggests Ascension Island as a place to imprison migrants who cannot be sent anywhere else.

Ascension Island, the UK overseas territory in the South Atlantic, used to feature in the “fantasy island” maunderings of Priti Patel, when she was home secretary. Nothing came of it because “it’s a long, long way and it would be expensive”, as Farage says, before giving the game away: “But again, it’s symbolism.”

He is right. It is symbolism, but it is effective. Attempts to point out the practical drawbacks of Farage’s policy are beside the point. The failures of existing asylum policy are so shocking, and the government seems to be so powerless to fix them, that almost any alternative policy seems worth a try.

As the summer has lengthened, it is clearer than ever that Keir Starmer’s government is in serious trouble. For a while after the election, the story was that poor decisions and a difficult inheritance led to early unpopularity, as if this might be a temporary thing. And it may still be that three years of unexpected and strong economic growth would transform the situation. But otherwise, the perception that the government – of both main parties – has lost control over who can come into the country seems fundamental. The default assumption has to be that, unless Starmer can stop the boats, Farage will be prime minister.

[...] ‘Which makes me wonder at the absence of urgency in the government. Starmer watched as Rishi Sunak, having promised to stop the boats, failed to do so and was punished at the ballot box. Yet he risks the same thing happening to him... (MORE - missing details)

[stryder]

https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/asy...13019.html

EXCERPTS: Nigel Farage’s plan for the mass deportation of asylum seekers is still unrealistic. His advisers have given it more thought than the previous plan, which was to pick up people on small boats and take them back to France.

[...] Farage’s plan now is ... to send them Somewhere Else. ... “Somewhere Else” includes countries such as Afghanistan and Eritrea...

Farage’s plan doesn’t even seem to convince him, because he has not one but two back-up plans, presumably in case public servants refuse to carry out instructions that may be unlawful in common law. He is “open to” reviving the Rwanda scheme, and also suggests Ascension Island as a place to imprison migrants who cannot be sent anywhere else.

Ascension Island, the UK overseas territory in the South Atlantic, used to feature in the “fantasy island” maunderings of Priti Patel, when she was home secretary. Nothing came of it because “it’s a long, long way and it would be expensive”, as Farage says, before giving the game away: “But again, it’s symbolism.”

He is right. It is symbolism, but it is effective. Attempts to point out the practical drawbacks of Farage’s policy are beside the point. The failures of existing asylum policy are so shocking, and the government seems to be so powerless to fix them, that almost any alternative policy seems worth a try.

As the summer has lengthened, it is clearer than ever that Keir Starmer’s government is in serious trouble. For a while after the election, the story was that poor decisions and a difficult inheritance led to early unpopularity, as if this might be a temporary thing. And it may still be that three years of unexpected and strong economic growth would transform the situation. But otherwise, the perception that the government – of both main parties – has lost control over who can come into the country seems fundamental. The default assumption has to be that, unless Starmer can stop the boats, Farage will be prime minister.

[...] ‘Which makes me wonder at the absence of urgency in the government. Starmer watched as Rishi Sunak, having promised to stop the boats, failed to do so and was punished at the ballot box. Yet he risks the same thing happening to him... (MORE - missing details)

Considering Farages UKIP party (prior to Reform) too MEP spots just to prove how ineffectual he and the party was with Europe, (so as to get Brexit) I'm pretty sure sticking him in charge will just increase the problems the countries already faces. We'd be better off with a coalition instead of Farage.

[Syne]

Yeah, keep doing the same thing and expecting different result.

[confused2]

Personally I think the French are elping migrants and the more they elp them the more they come. We could try pointing out that without us and our amazing allies they'd all be speaking German - and our new German friends would ask "Vots wrong mit speaking German?". Until and unless the French make it a very serious offence to be in possession of a boat with intent to smuggle migrants (or anything) .. we're effed.

[confused2]

And another alternative (from Farage)..
Reform UK would pay countries for migrant return deals

Under the plan, named Operation Restoring Justice, Reform UK would bar anyone who comes to the UK on small boats from claiming asylum, and strike deals with countries to return those people.
Reform UK says it would make £2bn available for returns deals, with aid offered as an incentive and sanctions potentially imposed on uncooperative countries.

More https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5yk4r5e514o

[Syne]

Paying would likely incentivize any country facilitating such immigration.

[C C]

And another alternative (from Farage)..
Reform UK would pay countries for migrant return deals

Under the plan, named Operation Restoring Justice, Reform UK would bar anyone who comes to the UK on small boats from claiming asylum, and strike deals with countries to return those people.
Reform UK says it would make £2bn available for returns deals, with aid offered as an incentive and sanctions potentially imposed on uncooperative countries.

More https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5yk4r5e514o

Italy has been paying Libya for some time. They tried everything else before that to stop the crossings, but nada results.

Italy reups funding to force migrants back to Libya (excerpts): In its obsession to keep migrants and asylum seekers away from its shores, Italy is paying for tens of thousands of people to be intercepted and returned to Libya, where they face abuses that the UN describes as possible crimes against humanity.

[...] Since it was signed in 2017, the financial and technical support Italy provides to Libyan authorities has been key in facilitating the interception of thousands of people crossing the Mediterranean Sea to reach Italy, forcing them back to Libya.

[...] the Italian government keeps providing significant support to Libyan authorities despite these findings, countless reports by international human rights organizations...

It's a mystery how the technologically backward British Empire (in relative retrospect) could transport its own native prisoners to distant places like Australia, but somehow it is not tenable to travel far in this era. There are huge swaths of areas around the globe that are barely populated. (In even middle North America for instance, only 60 million people live in the western half of the United States, and forty million of that is in California, and the vast majority of the latter are concentrated in even smaller areas of that state.)

[Yazata]

[Image: GzpHQy8W0AEnXMF?format=jpg&name=small]

[Yazata]

As I write this an absolutely huge peaceful demonstration is taking place in London in favor of British nationalism, and in opposition to mass-migration. Many are holding signs remembering Charlie Kirk and chanting 'Charlie, Charlie'. The demonstration's scale is visible in the video in the X post below:

https://x.com/EricLDaugh/status/1966836475804410120

The terminally-woke London Metropolitan Police are low-balling it, claiming that it's 'only' 110,000 people, but I've seen mass demonstrations and this is more than that, several hundred thousand at the very least, perhaps half a million or more. Again, watch the video.

[Syne]

Yeah, that looks like way more than 110,000.