Nigel Farage has confirmed he would deport women who cross the Channel on small boats to Afghanistan. The Reform UK leader had previously not been clear on whether he would send women back as part of his party’s mass deportations policy.
During an interview with Sky News today he was repeatedly asked if he would return women who enter Britain illegally to the Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. Mr Farage said: “For clarity, those that cross the English Channel will be detained and deported, men and women. Children, we’ll have to think about.”
In a separate interview with the BBC, Mr Farage rowed back on his pledge in his conference speech yesterday to stop small boats within two weeks of taking power.
Speaking today, he said it would be a fortnight after new legislation was passed.
The Brexiteer said he would introduce similar laws to those passed by Australian prime minister Tony Abbott over a decade ago to stop arrivals from Indonesia.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage (Image: Getty)
Mr Farage said: “As soon as the law is in place. As soon as you have the ability to detain and deport, you’ll stop it in two weeks.”
The Reform UK leader had told an audience at the NEC in Birmingham on Friday it would take a fortnight of him entering Downing Street to halt arrivals.
He said: “We will stop the boats and we will detain and deport those who illegally break into our country doing what nearly every normal country around the rest of the world does.”
