Reform UK has unveiled a radical prisons policy that would see foreign criminals deported to serve their sentences in countries such as El Salvador and Kosovo, a move aimed at freeing up prison space in Britain. The party has pledged to remove over 10,000 foreign nationals from UK jails, with Home Affairs Spokesperson Zia Yusuf announcing the plan on social media platform X.
Deportation Plan for Foreign Nationals
Yusuf stated that if a criminal's home country refuses to take them back, Reform would send them to 'serve in countries like El Salvador and Kosovo.' The policy was unveiled late on Sunday, with Yusuf vowing to 'change the law so that those who commit serious crimes like murder, manslaughter, rape and serious violence serve their full sentences.'
'Unbelievably, there are over 10,000 foreign nationals in British jails,' Yusuf said. 'We will deport all foreign nationals from our jails. If their home countries won't take them back we will send them to serve their sentences in countries like El Salvador and Kosovo. We will use the space created to ensure that serious criminals stay where they belong. Behind bars.'
Talks with El Salvador
According to The Sun, initial conversations have already taken place between El Salvador and Reform about renting prison spots. Nigel Farage has reportedly opened talks with the Central American nation, which is known for its notorious 'hellhole' mega-prisons. A Reform delegation, led by party chairman Lee Anderson, is expected to visit the country within months to assess the feasibility of the plan.
Reform's 'Shadow Chancellor' Robert Jenrick defended the proposal, saying: 'Reform will send foreign criminals to rot in jail in the likes of El Salvador, so killers like those of PC Andrew Harper are never released early.'
Controversial Prison Conditions
The plan has drawn criticism due to the harsh conditions in El Salvador's prisons, where inmates are reportedly crammed into cells for 23.5 hours a day, with each cell holding 65 to 70 prisoners. Rival gang members are often housed together, raising human rights concerns. The approach mirrors a controversial agreement struck by former US President Donald Trump to deport migrants from the United States to El Salvador.
Nightingale Prisons and Overcrowding Crisis
Farage is also expected to announce plans to build 'Nightingale prisons' to create 12,000 additional prison places. The policy comes amid intense government pressure to reverse plans that would allow two of PC Andrew Harper's killers to be released early. More than 850,000 people have signed a petition calling for Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers to remain in jail.
However, ministers are facing a prison overcrowding crisis, with warnings that the entire system could collapse unless thousands of convicts are released early. This is the first major test of Andy Burnham's premiership, with a Government source telling The Daily Telegraph on Friday that the Prime Minister is prepared to 'explore every option' to block their early release.
Government and Labour Responses
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: 'We have been clear that we wanted to go further and block more offenders from getting out sooner into their sentence but could not do so without risking prisons reaching capacity and collapsing. If that happened, police could not make arrests, courts could not remand offenders and there would be unchecked criminality on our streets.'
A Labour Party spokesperson added: 'Keeping the public safe is and always will be Labour's first priority. The Government has already made clear we are working at pace to deport foreign criminals and we're building more prison places to deliver justice for victims and keep criminals behind bars. Reform have no serious answers to the Tory prisons crisis and would lead the system to collapse. This would result in a free for all for dangerous and violent offenders, including murderers and rapists. Nigel Farage and Reform simply can't be trusted to keep Britain safe.'
