Labour’s Deportation Plane Takes Off… With Nobody On Board

Keir Starmer’s much-touted one-in-one-out deportation deal with France has quickly propelled into complete chaos this morning after a second flight left the tarmac with not one single illegal migrant on the flight. Another deportee was scheduled to be on the Air France service bound for Paris, but once again, human rights lawyers stepped in at the last minute to block the removal.

This morning, the Tories tore into the blueprint, branding newly-appointed Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood “just as ineffective as the last one.” Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp interjected: “Labour has failed to deport a single illegal immigrant yesterday or today as they had promised – the flights both took off without a single migrant on board. Only yesterday I told the new Home Secretary they need to completely repeal the Human Rights Act for immigration matters, but she refused and this is the predictable result.”

“This Labour government is too weak to control our borders. Their 16-in-one-out deal would see 94% of illegal immigrants crossing the channel allowed to stay, and they are so weak and incompetent that they can’t even make that happen. The new Home Secretary is just as ineffective as the last one.

“The government’s latest gimmick is a joke.”

The debacle follows yesterday’s first deportation flight, which also flew empty.

Labour was left red-faced this morning as a minister couldn’t say when Sir Keir’s key deportation deal with France would see a single migrant removed.

A Heathrow-to-Paris deportation on Monday was halted amid protests and the possibility of legal action.

Since early August, 90 Channel migrants have been detained, with lawyers now advising them ahead of their scheduled returns to France.

Instead of transporting a big group on a single charter flight, the Home Office is relying on daily commercial flights with far fewer passengers.

Alex Davies-Jones, the Justice minister, stressed that the government won’t offer a ‘running commentary’ on its policy, arguing it would hand people smugglers ‘exactly what they want’.

She said to Times Radio: “I’m not going to comment or give a running commentary on what is happening here. We are doing this as soon as we can, and we’re looking to go even further here under the asylum bill.

“These deportations will be happening as soon as possible. I’m not going to be giving a running commentary on what is happening, but we are delivering for the British people on their priorities.”

“If I was to break down for you exactly a time-by-time, day-by-day movement on our returns policy, then that would be giving these abhorrent people smugglers exactly what they want.

“This would be allowing them to know what the government is doing when, and they would be able to respond to that. We are not going to be doing them any favours.”

This morning, Andrew Neil labelled the delay ‘no surprise’, arguing that Sir Keir had brought the chaos upon himself.

The ex-BBC political presenter slammed: ‘Keir Starmer was part of the lawfare movement which elevated rule by lawyers and the courts above rule by elected politicians. He is reaping what he sowed.