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The UK Government has announced a new initiative to deport foreign criminals currently held in prisons across England and Wales. A newly established immigration enforcement squad, backed by a £5 million investment, will be deployed across 80 jails to remove those with no legal right to remain, aiming to alleviate the growing prison capacity crisis, according to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ).
Set to be operational by April 1, the specialist team will assist the Home Office in identifying and managing foreign offenders. The plan includes deporting criminals up to 18 months before their sentence ends and transferring others to serve their remaining time in their home countries.
Currently, over 10,000 foreign national offenders (FNOs) are incarcerated in the UK, making up approximately 12% of the total prison population—roughly one in eight prisoners. Since July last year, around 3,200 foreign offenders have been deported, a 19% increase compared to the previous year.
Additionally, nearly 21,000 removals have taken place within the same period, marking the highest rate of deportations in over five years, the MoJ reported.
As of February 24, the prison population in England and Wales stood at 87,199—the highest since October 21 last year, just before more than 1,000 prisoners were released early to address overcrowding.
To tackle the crisis, ministers have pledged to create 14,000 additional prison spaces by 2031 as part of broader reforms to improve the prison system and reduce reoffending rates.
Prisons Minister Lord James Timpson emphasized the importance of the initiative, stating, "It is unfair for British taxpayers to bear the cost of incarcerating foreign criminals who have harmed our communities. Under this Government, removals have increased by nearly 20%. We are now taking steps to speed up the process, reducing pressure on overcrowded prisons and the public purse. This is part of our Plan for Change—fixing the broken prison system we inherited and ensuring public safety."
