Labour’s Migrant Deal With France Exposed as New Report Reveals How It Caused More Problems for Britain’s Immigration System

Labour’s immigration deal with France has come under fresh criticism after a new report revealed that the agreement caused problems for other efforts to control illegal immigration in Britain.

The deal, known as the “one-in-one-out” scheme, was introduced to reduce the number of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats. Under the agreement, Britain could return certain migrants to France while accepting an agreed number of migrants through a legal route.

However, a new report by John Tuckett, the Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, has revealed that the government gave the scheme so much attention that it affected other immigration operations.

According to the report, immigration officers faced difficulties finding enough detention spaces to hold foreign criminals, failed asylum seekers and other people waiting to be removed from the UK.

This meant that officers had fewer spaces available to detain people who were supposed to be deported.

A previous investigation by the Sunday Express claimed that the shortage of detention spaces resulted in some foreign criminals being released into British communities while waiting for decisions about their immigration cases.

Sources within Border Force warned that some of those released included people convicted of serious crimes such as murder and rape.

However, the Home Office strongly rejected the suggestion that criminals were released because detention centres were full. Officials insisted that decisions about releasing foreign offenders on immigration bail were not based on the availability of detention spaces.

The latest report has now raised further questions about how the government managed the agreement with France.

John Tuckett explained that the scheme was treated as one of the Home Office’s most important operations. As a result, it placed pressure on detention centres and reduced the resources available for other immigration work.

The report also revealed that Britain faced serious difficulties when trying to return migrants to France.

Some migrants challenged their deportation through the courts, causing delays. At the same time, French authorities refused to accept some of the people Britain wanted to send back.

The situation became even more difficult because France did not always explain why certain migrants were rejected.

According to the report, this meant British immigration officials sometimes spent time and resources preparing to deport people who would eventually be refused by France.

The findings have angered Conservative politicians, who believe Labour’s immigration policy has failed to deliver the results promised.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp criticised the government, claiming that the agreement had made little difference to the number of migrants arriving in small boats.

He argued that only around 3% of arrivals were removed under the scheme, meaning the vast majority remained in Britain.

Philp also claimed that detention spaces used for the agreement could have been used to hold foreign criminals and other migrants awaiting deportation.

He accused Labour of focusing on political appearances rather than dealing with the immigration problem.

Former Immigration Minister Kevin Foster also expressed concern about the findings.

He said people convicted of serious crimes who are waiting to be deported can present significant risks to the public.

Foster described the reports of convicted killers being released from detention while the government pursued its agreement with France as shocking.

Another report by inspectors from the Independent Monitoring Boards raised concerns about how migrants selected for return to France were being treated.

The inspectors found that some migrants were being kept in detention longer than other groups.

They said information provided by the Home Office suggested that officials wanted to keep enough migrants in detention so they would have people ready to send back to France each week.

According to the report, officials aimed to bring around 150 people into detention each week to allow for legal challenges and other problems that could prevent removals.

This approach placed additional pressure on detention centres, which were already struggling with limited space.

John Tuckett also criticised the Home Office for failing to properly consider how the agreement would affect other immigration operations.

He said the government should have expected some of these problems because the scheme depended on detention spaces, immigration officers and staff who were already handling other cases.

The report also pointed to difficulties caused by France.

It revealed that French authorities rejected a significant number of migrants Britain wanted to return.

According to earlier reports, France refused to accept up to half of the migrants put forward by British officials under the agreement.

French authorities also declined to share some information about their reasons for rejecting migrants, citing data protection rules.

Tuckett said greater openness from France could have helped Britain avoid wasting detention spaces and resources on people who were unlikely to be accepted.

Robert Bates, Research Director at the Centre for Migration Control, also criticised the government’s handling of the scheme.

He claimed that the agreement had failed to stop small boats and had contributed to foreign offenders being released into British communities instead of remaining in detention while awaiting deportation.

Bates called for more investment in immigration detention centres and faster deportations.

Despite the criticism, figures show that 1,631 migrants were returned to France under the scheme, while Britain accepted 1,496 people through the agreement.

Meanwhile, the latest Home Office figures showed that 2,152 people, including failed asylum seekers and foreign criminals, were being held in immigration removal centres or detained in prisons under immigration powers as of June 30.

That was the highest number recorded since 2019, although it remained well below the 3,462 people held in 2014.

The findings have increased pressure on Labour to explain why its agreement with France was given such high priority when other immigration operations were already facing difficulties.

Critics believe the government should have focused more on deporting foreign criminals and failed asylum seekers, while the Home Office continues to dispute claims that the agreement caused dangerous offenders to be released because of a shortage of detention spaces.