Starmer Pledges Counter-Terrorism Approach Against Smuggling Gangs

Sir Keir Starmer has committed to employing counter-terrorism strategies to halt people-smuggling operations “before they act,” simultaneously declaring an additional £75 million for policing the UK’s borders. During an address, the prime minister stated that the newly established UK Border Security Command (BSC) would “treat people smugglers like terrorists,” granting it augmented authority to track suspected human traffickers and freeze their financial accounts. This financial injection, designated for recruiting hundreds of new investigators and intelligence officers, elevates the total funding for the BSC to £150 million. However, Kevin Saunders, a former immigration chief, expressed that these modifications would not prevent illegal migrants from entering the UK or halt small boat crossings. Addressing the Interpol general assembly in Glasgow, an event convening senior police officials and ministers from almost 200 member nations, the prime minister declared his “personal mission to smash the people-smuggling gangs.” He affirmed, “We are going to treat people smugglers like terrorists – we are taking our approach to counter terrorism, which we know works, and applying it to the gangs.” He further stated, “We have got to combine resources, share intelligence and tactics, and tackle the problem upstream, working together to shut down the smuggling routes.” The government has indicated its intention to enact new legislation, granting those combating smuggling operations increased authority to track suspects’ movements and freeze their bank accounts. Concurrently, the BSC is slated to receive supplementary funding for: Nevertheless, during an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr. Saunders, who served as chief immigration officer for ports, remarked that “unfortunately what the prime minister is trying to do is not feasible.” Mr. Saunders explained that the UK could only prosecute and imprison people smugglers “in the UK and the majority of people smugglers are actually based in the Middle East and Turkey.” He added that within the UK’s asylum framework, “you can’t deport failed asylum seekers” who destroy documents. Lacking official documentation, the UK frequently cannot verify the country of origin for asylum seekers, leading their native countries to decline their repatriation. A spokesperson for the Conservative Party commented, “It is a shame that Starmer has not recognised the extent of the crisis in the Channel sooner, as he and the Labour Party voted against numerous measures to stop the gangs while they were in opposition.” The spokesperson further asserted, “If Starmer continues to ignore the need for a deterrent to stop migrants crossing the Channel, there will be more deaths in the Channel as more and more migrants continue to cross it.” Sir Keir had previously rescinded the Rwanda deportation scheme, which represented the Conservative government’s strategy to deter Channel crossings. Over 5,400 individuals traversed the Channel in small boats during October, marking the highest monthly total recorded since October 2022. Cumulatively, more than 27,500 people have completed the crossing this year to date, exceeding the figure for the corresponding period in 2023. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper attributed the elevated number of October crossings to unusually favorable weather conditions. Nevertheless, she informed the BBC that the government could not solely attribute surges in illegal immigration to weather conditions and must instead “go after the criminal gangs at the heart of this.” When questioned about the anticipated timeline for a reduction in small boat crossings, Cooper declined to specify a particular target. She further noted that deploying investigators and new technology would require time, but the government aimed to advance “as rapidly as possible.” Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content of external sites. Information regarding our approach to external linking is available.