Key Keir Starmer blunder is hurting Britain's bid to stop the boats, Tory MP says

Sir Keir Starmer is "hollowing out" the facilities Britain needs to detain and deport small boat migrants, Tory MP Katie Lam has declared. The shadow Home Office minister, a rising star within the Conservative Party, said the Prime Minister is delaying upgrades to the migrant processing centre in Manston.

And he has slashed investment by over £1.7billion, Ms Lam said. It comes as a record number of people claimed asylum during Sir Keir's first full year in office. And the number of Channel migrants being deported has fallen.

Ms Lam said: "Labour talk tough on smashing the gangs and stopping the boats, but the reality is returns are far too low and Starmer's Government is weakening the infrastructure needed.

"Slashing investment at Manston migrant processing centre from £2.7billion to under £1billion and delaying upgrades until 2029 leaves Britain without the detention and deportation capacity we desperately need. Without proper facilities, migrants can't be detained and removed. That's why returns are so abysmal on Labour's watch.

"Instead of fixing the system, they are hollowing it out, leaving taxpayers footing the bill for hotels and communities paying the price.

"Unless Labour reverse course and invest in real deportation capacity, Britain will remain powerless to control its borders."

Some 111,084 people applied for protection in the year to June, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.

This is up 14% from 97,107 in the year to June 2024 and nearly double the number in 2021.

The most common nationalities among asylum applicants in the year to June 2025 were Pakistani (10.1% of the total), Afghan (7.5%), Iranian (7.0%) and Eritrean (6.7%).

Shocking analysis revealed 90% of Pakistanis claimed asylum after travelling to the UK on a valid visa, while 87% of Bangladeshi applicants travelled to the UK legally.

A further 71% of Indian asylum applicants used a visa to travel to the UK, highlighting widespread fears over the abuse of the UK's generosity.

By contrast, 84% of Afghans who claimed asylum arrived by a small boat. Some 89% of Eritrean applicants arrived the same way.

The asylum crisis cost taxpayers £4.76billion a year in 2024-25, down from a record £5.38billion in 2023-24.

But the number of Channel migrants being deported under Labour is falling.

Some 2,330 people have been deported during Sir Keir's first full year in office, compared to 2,516 in the final year of the Conservative Government.

In total, just 6,313 small boat migrants have been returned since the crisis began in 2018.