Some 30,099 illegal migrants have crossed the Channel in 2025 so far

The Government are set to unveil plans to move illegal migrants from asylum hotels to army barracks on disused military bases as Sir Keir Starmer battles to get a grip on Britain’s spiralling migrant crisis.

Newly appointed Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is believed to be unveiling the policy in the coming days.

 

The move comes just days after the Home Office successfully overturned a High Court injunction granted to Epping Forest District Council to stop the Bell Hotel being used to house illegal migrants.

The council had an application to appeal its case to the Supreme Court rejected with “no reasons given”.

Shabana Mahmood

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is believed to be unveiling the policy in the coming days

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Home Office lawyers argued the rights of asylum seekers were more important than those of Epping council at the Court of Appeal.

Britain is also nearing a deal with Germany for a new “one in, one out” scheme after signing one with the France just weeks ago, The Telegraph has reported.

The Prime Minister ordered an overhaul of Home Office staff on Saturday, after axing the border security minister and swapping out two junior ministers in the department following Ms Mahmood’s appointment.

However, on the new Home Secretary’s first day in office, 1,096 migrants illegally crossed the Channel and onto British shores.

Keir Starmer

The Prime Minister ordered an overhaul of Home Office staff on Saturday

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One source close to Ms Mahmood told The Telegraph: “Her position is going to be ‘nothing is off the table’.

“We know the big problems that we face.”

“Bringing down net migration and tackling illegal migration is one of the public’s key priorities and it’s one of our key priorities,” another source told the newspaper.

“Shabana’s appointment is significant. It shows how seriously Keir takes securing our borders.”

Migrants

On the new Home Secretary’s first day in office, over 1,000 migrants illegally crossed the Channel and onto British shores

 | PA

Sir Keir has reportedly instructed Home Office staff he wants to see the end of asylum hotels use before the Government’s target date of 2029.

Currently, only two of Britain’s disused military bases are currently being used to accommodate illegal migrants.

The Napier Barracks in Kent and the MDP Wethersfield were opened by the previous Conservative Government, who faced significant backlash from pro-migrant organisations for the move.

In 2023, then-Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper labelled plans to open the former bases as “an admission of failure” on illegal migration policy.

In his mass deportation plan unveiling last month, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said he would house illegal migrants at detention centres in disused RAF bases.

This drew criticism for Shadow Home Secretary Robert Jenrick who suggested the measure was not tough enough, saying illegal migrants should be housed in “rudimentary prisons, not holiday camps”.

Mr Farage’s proposals also included a pledge to take Britain out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and swap it for a British Bill of Rights.

In Ms Mahmood’s new role, she will be leading a review into how foreign criminals exploit the ECHR to block their deportations.