- An Indian national was the first person deported from the UK to France under the new treaty
- UK-France treaty allows the return of migrants arriving illegally through the English Channel on small boats
- The UK Home Secretary said more deportations are expected in the coming weeks
An Indian national became the first person to be deported from the United Kingdom to France under the new returns treaty between the two European neighbours to curb illegal English Channel crossings on small boats. Britain's Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood called the unnamed India's deportation "an important first step" in the UK government's campaign to curb illegal migration orchestrated by "smuggler gangs."
"Today, we have dealt a blow to the smuggler gangs. The removal of small boat migrants to France has begun. I will do whatever it takes to secure our borders - and this is a vital first step," she said.
"It sends a message to people crossing in small boats: if you enter the UK illegally, we will seek to remove you."
Britain's interior ministry said further removals were expected later this week and next week, while the first legal arrivals from France were expected "in the coming days".
The French government also confirmed the deportation, with a source telling news agency AFP that London had returned an Indian national.
About The UK-France Treaty
The move came little over a month after the UK and France signed a year-long "one in, one out" scheme to exchange migrants in the hope of deterring small boat crossings. Under the new scheme, Britain can return small-boat migrants after they arrive across the Channel if they are deemed ineligible for asylum, including those who have passed through a "safe country" to reach UK shores.
In return, London will accept an equal number of migrants from France who can apply for a UK visa via an online platform. The pilot scheme, which came into force in August, is set to run until June 2026.
What PM Starmer Said
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the deportation provided "proof of concept" that the new partnership can work, adding his government now needed to increase removals.
"We need to ramp that up at scale, which was always envisaged under the scheme," Starmer said.
Illegal Immigration In The UK
Tens of thousands of migrants have arrived annually on UK shores in recent years, fuelling domestic anger and the rise of Brexit figurehead Nigel Farage's hard-right Reform UK Party.
The journeys across one of the world's busiest shipping lanes have also repeatedly proved fatal for migrants. At least 23 people have died so far this year, according to an AFP tally based on official French data.
Starmer took power in July 2024, vowing to "smash the gangs" behind the journeys, and scrapped a costly scheme planned by the previous Conservative government to send some migrants to Rwanda.
Thursday's first removal comes just days after the High Court in London temporarily blocked the planned deportation of an Eritrean migrant. Mahmood reiterated she "will continue to challenge any last-minute, vexatious attempts to frustrate a removal in the courts".
The man had claimed he was a victim of trafficking, and the High Court gave him 14 days to provide proof. The Home Office was set to apply to the Court of Appeal to cut that deadline on Thursday. Meanwhile, the government will launch a "rapid review" of modern anti-slavery legislation "to prevent its misuse", it said.
France will send the first migrants under the scheme to the UK from Saturday, its interior ministry has said. But French non-governmental organisations have criticised that side of the scheme as largely unworkable.
