Leader of the UK Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has announced what she called the toughest reforms Britain has ever seen in immigration policy, unveiling a sweeping border strategy designed to detain and deport 150,000 illegal migrants every year.

In a video message posted on her 𝕏 handle on Sunday, Badenoch said the new Radical Borders Plan would create a Removals Force modelled after the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to strengthen Britain’s border enforcement system.

“My message is clear: if you’re here illegally, you will be detained and deported,” Badenoch declared in the caption accompanying her announcement video.

Positioning herself as a hardliner on immigration, Badenoch sharply criticised both Conservative and Labour governments for what she described as years of failure to tackle illegal migration effectively.

“Today, I’m launching our Radical Borders Plan, the toughest reforms Britain has ever seen to border laws and operations.

“Successive governments have failed on immigration. Labour promised to smash the gangs. Instead, in just a year, they delivered record small boat crossings, over 50,000 illegal arrivals, 32,000 people in asylum hotels, and billions wasted. It’s pure weakness. Britain needs a serious, credible plan and the backbone to deliver it,” she added.

Key Provisions of the Plan

According to Badenoch, the Radical Borders Plan would ban asylum claims from illegal entrants, repeal the Human Rights Act, and withdraw the UK from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), moves that would represent a seismic shift in Britain’s immigration framework.

She said all illegal arrivals would be deported within seven days, with legal barriers to mass deportations removed.

Under the new policy, countries refusing to repatriate their citizens could face visa sanctions, while the new Removals Force would “shut down the asylum hotel racket,” saving taxpayers billions of pounds and restoring public trust in the UK’s borders.

“Only the Conservatives have a serious, credible plan to deliver stronger borders. If you come here illegally, you will be deported,” Badenoch said emphatically.

Reports by Sky News indicate that the new Removals Force will replace the existing Home Office Immigration Enforcement unit.

It will be granted sweeping powers, including the use of facial recognition technology without prior warning, to identify and remove undocumented migrants.

If implemented, the plan would mark one of the most radical overhauls of UK immigration policy in decades, setting the stage for fierce political and legal debates over border control and human rights.

It was  reports that Badenoch’s announcement quickly drew backlash after her tense exchange on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, where she dismissed questions about where deported migrants would be sent.

“I’m tired of all of these irrelevant questions about where they should go,” she said.

“They will go back to where they should be or another country, but they should not be here.”

When pressed further, she replied curtly: “They will go back to where they came from.”

Her remarks sparked criticism from human rights advocates and opposition figures, who accused her of oversimplifying complex asylum issues and disregarding international law.

Despite the backlash, Badenoch doubled down on her stance, arguing that firm action was the only way to restore credibility to Britain’s immigration system.

“This plan will end the chaos, remove incentives for illegal entry, and ensure that our borders are respected again,” she said.

She added that the new policy would send a “clear signal to the world” that Britain was serious about law enforcement and border sovereignty.

While right-leaning members of the Conservative Party hailed it as “decisive and long overdue”, opposition figures and civil rights groups branded it “inhumane and legally reckless.”

It was reports that if approved, the plan would require Parliament to revoke existing human rights protections and rewrite sections of immigration law, a move that could face legal challenges domestically and in European courts.

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The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has alleged that over 2753 Igbo property have been demolished in Lagos since 2019.

The organization made the assertion while reacting to the recent Lagos Trade Fair Complex demolition.

Ohanaeze said it is imperative to address these insidious actions perpetrated by the Lagos State Government under the stewardship of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

The pan lgbo group therefore demanded an immediate cessation of all demolition activities specifically targeted at Igbo investments within Lagos State, saying that such measures are not merely administrative actions but perceived as a calculated political vendetta designed to systematically dismantle the economic contributions of the Igbo residents in the state.

In a statement issued on Sunday by the factional Deputy- President-General, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro and Chief Chinemeze Ohia, factional national spokesperson, Ohanaeze condemned the recent demolitions of shops and structures at the Trade Fair Complex in Lagos.

The statement read: “The recent demolitions blatantly contravene the protections afforded to individuals by the 1999 Nigerian Constitution, particularly Section 40, alongside the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights, the UN Convention on Human Rights, and the foundational provisions of the 1978 Land Use Act, which unequivocally requires lawful revocation of Rights of Occupancy, advance notice, and just compensation for affected property owners.

“Independent investigations commissioned by Ohanaeze Ndigbo have revealed alarming violations of the Urban and Regional Development Law of Lagos State. Notably, there was a conspicuous absence of environmental impact assessments or consultations with stakeholders prior to these demolitions.

“Insights obtained from interviews with Dr. Oluyinka Olumide, the Lagos State Commissioner for the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, underscore that the Trade Fair Complex is under the jurisdiction of the Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment, thus inherently questioning the legality of state-led demolition actions.

“Ohanaeze Ndigbo resolutely calls on Governor Sanwo-Olu to halt these assaults on Igbo properties and investments in Lagos State. We remind the Governor that he was overwhelmingly supported by the Igbo community during his 2019 electoral campaign.

“Since his administration’s commencement, our records reveal that over 2,753 properties—houses, shops, and their valuable contents—have been callously demolished without due recourse to the owners, representing colossal losses amounting to approximately 23 trillion Naira in investments. It is incumbent upon us to confront these issues forthrightly, irrespective of any political sensitivities.

“Our assessments evince a concerning pattern; it appears that the Lagos State Government may be engaging in acts of political retribution against Ndigbo in Lagos, particularly in the wake of the electoral dynamics observed in the aftermath of the 2023 elections.

“The prevailing inflation rate of 23.9% only exacerbates the economic harm inflicted upon Igbo traders, and indications suggest that further demolitions will occur as a means to diminish the Igbo presence prior to the 2027 elections.

“In a passionate plea, we urge President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene directly in this matter. The President must order an immediate cessation of further demolitions and compel the Lagos State Government to deliver adequate compensation to those affected. Additionally, we advocate for the reopening of the Calabar Seaport, which has languished in disuse for 59 years, and call for the establishment of a new Southeast Seaport at the Azumiri Blue River, in Ukwa East LGA Of Abia State,located a mere 34 nautical miles from the Atlantic Ocean.

“Furthermore, it is imperative that we alert the Igbo community residing in Lagos State to the troubling prospects ahead. Information at our disposal indicates that additional demolitions targeting Igbo properties may occur as early as 2026.

“It is high time for Igbo business owners to evaluate the sustainability of their investments in Lagos and consider reestablishing their enterprises in the Old Eastern Region, particularly the Southeast. The ‘Think Home’ philosophy (Akụ Ruo Ulo) is increasingly seen as the most viable strategy in response to the ongoing demolitions.”

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The U.S. could see an unprecedented 15,000 churches shut their doors this year, far more than the few thousand expected to open, according to denominational reports and church consultants.

Why it matters:

The unprecedented contraction, expected to continue over the next decade, risks leaving gaps in communities nationwide — particularly rural ones, where churches often are crucial providers of food aid, child care and disaster relief.

The big picture:

The decline of traditional brick-and-mortar churches comes as a record number of Americans (29%) are identifying as religiously unaffiliated, and as 62% identify as Christians — down from 78% in 2007, according to the Pew Research Center.

At the same time, mostly non-denominational megachurches — and evangelical Christianity in general — are an increasing influence on American life, driven by charismatic leaders, sympathetic politicians and social media.

These colliding trends have shaken the nation’s longtime religious footing: There are fewer and fewer communities built around local churches, but rising pressure from conservative citizens and government officials to inject more religion into public schools, settings and institutions.

By the numbers:

The record number of church closings forecast this year stems from struggles many churches face — including retaining full-time pastors, said Thom Rainer, a former president of LifeWay Christian Resources, an entity of the Southern Baptist Convention that provides resources for churches.

In a widely shared Baptist Courier piece, Rainer — a consultant on church health — said that waves of church closings are coming, and that another 15,000 U.S. churches will move from full- to part-time time pastors.

The National Council of Churches estimates that 100,000 U.S. churches across denominations will close during the next several years, confirming Rainer’s analysis.

That would amount to roughly a quarter of the nation’s 350,000 to 400,000 churches today.
Zoom in: Mainline Protestant denominations such as Methodist, Presbyterian and Lutheran represent nearly all the church closings, said Ryan Burge, a political scientist who writes the “Graphs About Religion” Substack.

The closures mark a shift away from once-powerful denominations in the U.S. that brought people of diverse political views together, said Burge, author of the upcoming “The Vanishing Church: How the Hollowing Out of Moderate Congregations Is Hurting Democracy, Faith, and Us.”

Burge said that as a result, many communities are left with empty church buildings that can be difficult to sell because they often are next to historic cemeteries.

The intrigue:

The number of Catholic churches also appears to be declining, partly because of the continuing following from priest abuse lawsuits, said Andrew Chesnut, the Bishop Walter F. Sullivan chair in Catholic Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Baltimore’s Catholic Archdiocese, the nation’s oldest, is slashing its churches by about two-thirds, citing shrinking attendance and aging buildings, according to the AP.

“I think the only ones who have shown some dynamism lately on the American Christian landscape are these non-denominational, usually charismatic megachurches,” Chesnut said.

Evangelical megachurches, however, tend to have fluid memberships despite their growing influence in Republican Party politics, Burge said.

“The large churches have a lot of churn. A lot of new people come in every year, but a lot of people leave too, because they never build strong and deep ties.”

Their success is based on one or two leaders, and a death or scandal can damage or bring an end to that church, he said.

Megachurches could take membership hits in the future if younger Americans feel they’re being forced to accept religion in public spaces, Chesnut predicted.

“I think evangelicals are going to pay the price for so closely hitching their wagon to MAGA,” he said.

“If you’re making kids pray in school, as I’ve learned anytime I make my kids do something, they’ll do the opposite.”

Go deeper: Americans continue to lose their religion as the GOP pushes it

Non-religious ‘nones’ are on the rise, study shows our lawmakers are more religious than we are.

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