NIGEL Farage is responsible for causing the small boats crisis, Sir Keir Starmer claimed today.
The PM escalated his blazing row with the Reform chief as he declared Brexit is to blame for the onslaught of “Farage boats” in the channel.
Sir Keir Starmer has today claimed that Nigel Farage is responsible for causing the small boats crisis[/caption]
Sir Keir said Reform boss Nigel hated Britain and branded him an ‘enemy’[/caption]
Mr Farage fired back, warning Labour would be ‘taught a lesson’ in next year’s elections[/caption]
Sir Keir said that before Britain divorced Brussels, returns agreements with the EU would enable illegal migrants to be sent packing.
He accused Mr Farage of scuppering those deals and holding sole responsibility for Britain’s broken borders.
The PM told GB News: “I would gently point out to Nigel Farage and others that before we left the EU we had a returns agreement with every country in the EU, and he told the country it would make no difference if we left.
“He was wrong about that.
“These are ‘Farage boats’, in many senses, that are coming across the Channel.”
Since Labour conference began on Sunday, a disastrous 1,368 illegal arrivals turned up on Britain’s shores.
The PM today hinted he will consider changing how courts apply human rights laws in migrant cases concerning “torture”.
He said ministers should “look at issues” in Article 3 of the ECHR, which is often used by dinghy arrivals to prevent their deportation.
Migrants have used the treaty to complain that if they are returned to their home state, they will face inadequate conditions in prison.
Sir Keir told BBC Radio 4: “I think there’s a difference between someone being deported to summary execution and someone who is simply going somewhere where they don’t have the same level of healthcare, or for that matter the same prison conditions.
“And therefore, I do think we should look at issues like that again, I think there’s quite an appetite to look at issues like that again.”
It comes after the PM declared war on Mr Farage as he kicked off his keynote speech at conference yesterday.
Sir Keir said Reform boss Nigel hated Britain and branded him an “enemy” in a gloves-off Labour conference speech.
He vowed to “fight with every breath I have” to stop him.
Pitching himself as a true patriot, he said be believed in a Britain with “the grit of the Lionesses, the swagger of Oasis, the strength of the Red Roses”.
Mr Farage fired back, warning Labour would be “taught a lesson” in next year’s elections and accused the PM of whipping up hatred.
The clash lit up Labour’s four-day gathering in Liverpool, putting the fight between the two men at the centre of British politics.
Sir Keir said Britain now faces a “defining choice” as big as rebuilding from the rubble of World War Two.
Reform has pledged to axe Indefinite Leave to Remain and force migrants to reapply for visas after five years if it wins power, with Sir Keir branding the plan “racist”.
But Farage responded, accusing the PM of inciting violence against Reform UK MPs and campaigners by accusing him of racism.
It comes as Reform’s Zia Yusuf claims Nigel Farage has lost 75 per cent of his security detail just hours after the PM’s accusations.
Keir Starmer v Nigel Farage
By Sophia Sleigh
SIR Keir is painting Nigel Farage as the big bad bogeyman.
In his view, the next election will be a battle of good and evil. Labour are the goodies and Reform are the baddies.
But there is a serious risk this all backfires on him. By paying so much attention to the Brexit big beast, Sir Keir risks raising his profile exponentially.
Let’s be clear, the polls show this Labour government is not popular with the public. But Reform is growing in support day after day.
Even a leftie trade union boss has admitted thousands of his members want to back Nige.
And polling companies regularly find Mr Farage is more popular than Sir Keir. And we have already seen the PM’s “Attack Nige” strategy backfire.
When he labelled Reform UK’s policy of scrapping indefinite leave to remain as “racist” and “immoral” – party activists lapped it up.
As newspaper front pages tore into the PM, Mr Farage said: “Starmer has insulted millions of people.”
He is at risk of mimicking Gordon Brown’s infamous “bigoted woman” comment – which smeared a generation worried about mass immigration.
The fundamental point is, every single time Labour open their mouths to attack Reform – the party loves it.
Who says there is no such thing as bad publicity?
Sir Keir giving his keynote speech in Liverpool[/caption]
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