“Returns and deportations are at their highest level"
The number of foreign criminals avoiding deportation has hit a record of almost 20,000, as Shabana Mahmood pledges to increase detention of illegal migrants.
Home Office data shows 19,779 offenders are currently living in the UK despite facing deportation orders.
The figure has more than doubled from 8,500 in 2020. It is also up from 5,895 in March 2016.
Many of those identified for deportation have been released from prison and are living freely in Britain.
Officials say a growing number are using human rights laws to challenge deportation decisions and delay removal.
A Telegraph analysis of more than 400 immigration appeals over the past 18 months found offenders including sex attackers, robbers, fraudsters, arsonists and domestic abusers have successfully challenged deportation.
Many relied on Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects family life.
The research also found more than 40% of cases avoided removal by arguing either a breach of family life rights under Article 8 or risk of persecution under Article 3.
In total, 149 of 340 foreign criminals appealing on human rights grounds succeeded in their cases.
In 3,000 Upper Tribunal decisions, 426 involved foreign criminals.
Of these, 369 had committed offences in the UK and most appealed on human rights grounds. Judges allowed a significant proportion to remain in the country after considering family ties and legal claims.
One case involved a Pakistani drug dealer who avoided deportation after an immigration court accepted removal would prevent him from teaching his son how to shave and “talk to him about things a mother could not”.
He won on Article 8 grounds relating to family life.
On June 29, 2026, Ms Mahmood will announce a 40% increase in detention capacity. The Government aims to deport an additional 45,000 foreign criminals and failed asylum seekers over the next decade.
Detention centres at Campsfield, Oxfordshire, and Haslar, Hampshire, will be significantly expanded. Combined capacity will rise to 1,000 spaces, the highest level in nearly a decade.
Under new contracts, Haslar will increase from 130 to 600 beds. Campsfield will rise from 160 to 400. Overall capacity for immigration removal centres will increase to 3,440 spaces nationwide.
Ms Mahmood said: “Returns and deportations are at their highest level in nearly a decade.
“Nearly 70,000 individuals who have no right to be here have been removed from the UK since this Government took office. But we will not stop there.
“These expansions will see thousands more foreign criminals and illegal migrants who have no right to be here removed.”
The Government has also changed legislation to allow foreign criminals to be deported immediately after sentencing. Previously, they were often required to serve part of their prison sentence in the UK before removal proceedings began.
Further reforms will restrict the use of Article 8 in deportation appeals. Only immediate family relationships will be considered relevant.
Ministers say this will prevent claims based on distant relatives or extended family ties.
A single appeals body will replace the current two-tier tribunal system. Officials say this will reduce delays, as current cases can take around a year to be heard. New rules will also fast-track late claims submitted to delay removal.
Asylum seekers will be required to present all claims in a single appeal process. They will be removed if the appeal fails, even if they later form new relationships or have children in the UK.
Since July 2024, around 70,000 people have been deported, an increase of 41% over the previous 21 months. Of these, 10,000 were foreign national offenders, up 36% year-on-year.
Home Office enforcement funding is also rising. Immigration enforcement spending will increase from £681 million in 2023-24 to £1.33 billion by 2028-29. Staffing will rise from 4,500 to 7,300 officers.
Conservative MPs criticised the proposals and argued that the changes would not go far enough. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said it would take 50 years at current removal rates.
He said: “Hardly any foreign criminals were deported to countries outside Europe due to all the bogus claims that get accepted.
“Tweaking Article 8 and building more detention capacity alone will make no real difference.”
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