'Deport now, appeal later' scheme for foreign criminals expanded to 23 countries

A hostile environment era deportation policy for criminals is being expanded by the Labour government as it continues its migration crackdown.

The government wants to go further in extraditing foreign offenders before they have a chance to appeal by including more countries in the existing scheme.

Offenders that have a human right appeal rejected will get offshored, and further appeals will then get heard from abroad.

It follows the government announcing on Saturday that it wants to deport criminals as soon as they are sentenced.

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But the victims' minister refused to confirm whether those deported under the new measures will end up serving any time behind bars.

Alex Davies-Jones told Sky News on Monday that "it depends on a case by case basis".

Challenged on whether they would be sent to prison once they have been deported, she added: "They will be returned to the country of origin and it will be up to that country, what they do with them, whether they put them in prison in that country, or whether they choose for them to do as they wish.

"But what is important is that they are not staying here in our country. They are being deported immediately with no right to ever return."

Ms Davies-Jones also insisted that human rights legislation won't prevent foreign national offenders from being deported, as the Conservatives have warned.

The victims' minister told Sky News that the government's plans are "watertight" and said there is no way for prisoners to appeal and stay "if they're from one of these countries that we've listed, the new 23, that we've expanded it to".

The Conservatives have also cast doubt on whether the scheme will actually come into effect.

Kemi Badenoch said she will "believe it when I see it".

The Tory leader explained: "When we were deporting criminals, Keir Starmer was writing letters trying to stop our deportations."

She added that it is "the sort of stuff that they should have been doing on day one".

Ms Badenoch continued: "The fact that they tried to stop deportations before means that I don't really believe it. The government has released 26,000 prisoners since it came to power, released them early, there are now more criminals on our streets. That's what I'm really worried about."

What is the scheme, and how is it being expanded?

The "deport now, appeal later" policy was first introduced when Baroness Theresa May was home secretary in 2014 as part of the Conservative government's hostile environment policy to try and reduce migration.

It saw hundreds of people returned to a handful of countries like Kenya and Jamaica under Section 94B of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002, added in via amendment.

In 2017, a Supreme Court effectively stopped the policy from being used after it was challenged on the grounds that appealing from abroad was not compliant with human rights.

However, in 2023, then home secretary Suella Braverman announced she was restarting the policy after providing more facilities abroad for people to lodge their appeals.

Now, the current government says it is expanding the partnership from eight countries to 23.

Previously, offenders were being returned to Finland, Nigeria, Estonia, Albania, Belize, Mauritius, Tanzania and Kosovo for remote hearings.

Angola, Australia, Botswana, Brunei, Bulgaria, Canada, Guyana, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Latvia, Lebanon, Malaysia, Uganda and Zambia are the countries being added - with the government wanting to include more.

The Home Office claims this is the "the government's latest tool in its comprehensive approach to scaling up our ability to remove foreign criminals", touting 5,200 removals of foreign offenders since July 2024 - an increase of 14% compared with the year before.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "Those who commit crimes in our country cannot be allowed to manipulate the system, which is why we are restoring control and sending a clear message that our laws must be respected and will be enforced."

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Foreign Secretary David Lammy said: "We are leading diplomatic efforts to increase the number of countries where foreign criminals can be swiftly returned, and if they want to appeal, they can do so safely from their home country.

"Under this scheme, we're investing in international partnerships that uphold our security and make our streets safer."

Both ministers opposed the hostile environment policy when in opposition.

In 2015, Sir Keir Starmer had questioned whether such a policy was workable - saying in-person appeals were the norm for 200 years and had been a "highly effective way of resolving differences".

He also raised concerns about the impact on children if parents were deported and then returned after a successful appeal.

In today's announcement, the prime minister's administration said it wanted to prevent people from "gaming the system" and clamp down on people staying in the UK for "months or years" while appeals are heard.

(c) Sky News 2025: 'Deport now, appeal later' scheme for foreign criminals expanded to 23 countries