Reform UK has pledged to build new detention centres for illegal migrants in areas that vote Green if it wins the next general election, in a proposal it says is designed to ensure “democratic consent” for its mass deportation policy.
Nigel Farage’s party said it would “prioritise” locating facilities in areas with Green councils or MPs, arguing this reflects the Green Party’s position on migration.
The announcement comes as both Reform and the Greens are expected to make significant gains in upcoming council elections. The Greens are projected to perform strongly in major cities including London, Newcastle, Cambridge, and Manchester, while Reform is targeting former industrial towns such as Walsall and Hartlepool, as well as Conservative strongholds like Essex.
Reform says it will deport all illegal migrants in Britain—estimated by the party to number up to 600,000—if it forms a government. It also plans to detain up to 24,000 people at any one time in new facilities while they await removal.
Zia Yusuf, Reform’s home affairs spokesman, set out the policy in detail, saying: “Even though illegal migrants will not be allowed to leave the sites, we are committing to not placing these detention sites in areas with a Reform MP or where Reform controls the council.” He added: “Given the Green Party advocates for open borders and for an infinite number of undocumented men to come here, we will prioritise Green constituencies and Green-controlled councils to locate these detention centres.”
In a separate statement posted on X, Yusuf expanded on the proposal: “Today we announce a new policy: In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time. Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.” He added
If you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you. If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
Reform says the policy will be implemented through new legislation called the Mass Deportation Detention Act. The party says the law would designate specific areas for detention centres and limit the ability of legal challenges to block construction. It also plans to create a new agency, UK Deportation Command, to oversee removals.
The party argues that the legislation would prevent planning and procurement rules from delaying implementation, as decisions would be embedded in primary law passed by Parliament. Reform has also pledged to leave the European Convention on Human Rights, which it says could otherwise be used to challenge deportations and detention policies.
Yusuf described the approach as “an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.”
A Green Party spokesman criticised the announcement, saying Reform was making “unserious announcements” to distract from its wider political agenda.
