Migrants claiming benefits or earning too little will be ordered to leave Britain to end “the crisis at our borders”, the Tories have declared.
The Home Office, under the Conservatives, will be given new powers to revoke migrants’ leave to remain if they become a “burden”.
And all illegal migrants will be “automatically deported”, under the new proposals.
The Tories are trying to regain control of the narrative on immigration after a drubbing at the ballot box on Thursday, following years of record high levels of net migration.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp has unveiled the plans (Image: Getty)
And the party on Tuesday night unveiled plans for a “Deportation Bill” which will “end abuse, enforce the law and put British interests first”.
The Human Rights Act will be disapplied in all immigration cases, the Tories declared, barring foreign criminals from making spurious human rights claims. A binding annual cap on migrant numbers would also be introduced.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: “For months, this Labour government has turned a blind eye to the crisis at our borders, as small boat crossings have increased.
“The Conservatives are today introducing the Deportation Bill – a bold, pragmatic and deliverable plan to take back control of our borders and restore public confidence in our immigration system. If Labour can’t or won’t act, we will introduce a Bill and Labour MPs can vote against it.
“Labour and Reform are both complicit in the trade of empty slogans and hollow promises. Our plan can be enacted now to get immigration back under control.”
Under a future Tory Government, the Home Office will be given powers to deport all foreign criminals. This will close “loopholes” and end the “excuses”, with party officials adding “if you break the law here, you go”.
Countries that refuse to take back foreign criminals or failed asylum seekers will be slapped with visa sanctions. Migrants will also be told they have to live in the UK for 10 years, earning at least £38,700 before they can be given indefinite leave to remain.
And, in a significant hardening of policy, the Home Office will be given powers to “remove those who have become a burden to the UK, including those reliant on benefits or falling below income thresholds”.
The policy blitz comes after a round of local elections in which the Conservatives lost more than 600 councillors along with control of all 15 local authorities the party held going into Thursday’s poll.
