Reform UK will launch 'largest military operation since WW2' to end small boat crossings if party wins next general election

Reform UK will launch 'largest military operation since WW2' to end small boat crossings if party wins next general election The party is vowing to make Britain 'impenetrable' against the surge of illegal migrants flooding the Channel Don't Miss Most Read Latest Reform UK will launch what it describes as the "largest military operation since World War Two" to end small boat crossings if the party wins the next General Election. Under the plan, dubbed "Operation Fortress," Nigel Farage would dispatch the Royal Navy to intercept every migrant vessel attempting to cross from France - then take them back to French or Belgian waters. The party insists the scheme complies with "international law" and would serve both as a border security measure and a humanitarian initiative. Zia Yusuf, Reform's home affairs spokesman, warned how Britain is "being invaded" and said both Tory and Labour governments had "responded with a free ferry service and free hotels". He pledged that Mr Farage would "order His Majesty's Royal Navy to ensure that not a single unauthorised vessel crossing the English Channel makes it to the shores of the United Kingdom." The border, Mr Yusuf vowed, would become "impenetrable." Reform's blueprints include a joint military command drawing together personnel from the Navy, Royal Marines, the RAF and the British Army, alongside a dedicated surveillance unit tasked with monitoring approaching vessels. Once an unauthorised boat is detected and intercepted, its occupants would be taken into custody by Armed Forces personnel. Detainees would receive water, food and a medical evaluation - before being transported back across the Channel aboard Navy ships. Reform has also indicated it would push through emergency laws where needed to furnish the joint command with any additional legal powers required to carry out its operations. Reform wants to deploy the Royal Navy to stop small boat crossings |PA Mr Yusuf said "nobody" would be able to reach British shores by small boat under the scheme. The party pointed to the horror in Ceuta this week - which saw some 60,000 Moroccan migrants storm the border into Spain - as evidence of the need for its proposals. The EU will hold emergency talks this week over the invasion - but Spain's socialist Prime Minister instead has accused others of targeting his country because of "prejudice, fake news, ignorance, or political interest". A future Reform Government's efforts in the Channel could also win the support of the potential next French Government. Speaking to The Telegraph in December, the French National Rally party's president Jordan Bardella said he would support joint patrols with Britain and give the UK Border Force the green light to carry out “pushbacks” in the Channel. Mr Bardella and Mr Farage had lunch before he spoke to the newspaper. LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: Wednesday saw the highest number of migrant crossings, with 752 making their way to Britain from France |GETTY According to The Spectator, Mr Farage told him at the meal he would instruct the Royal Navy to turn back small boats in the Channel - one of Reform's longest-held campaign promises. "We came to the conclusion that we must prepare our political movements to exercise power and that it is possible we will do so at the same time," Mr Bardella said after the talks. Reform has framed the core purpose of Operation Fortress as a life-saving mission. Between 2018 and 2025, 162 people died attempting to cross the English Channel, according to figures from the University of Oxford's Migration Observatory. The announcement came days after the busiest single day for small boat arrivals this year. Wednesday saw 752 migrants reach Britain's shores alone - while 2,000 have arrived during the first fortnight of Andy Burnham's premiership. Mr Bardella previously held talks with Nigel Farage in London to forge an alliance with Reform UK | X/J_BARDELLABut Labour, which has overseen the arrival of tens of thousands of illegal migrants, claimed the proposal was a "reheated" policy designed to draw attention away from the party's own difficulties. A party spokesman said: "Reform have reheated an old announcement in their latest desperate bid to distract from their growing sleaze scandals. “Anger and easy answers won’t bring crossings down. "The serious action we’ve taken have started to have a real impact and has led to 46,000 attempted crossings stopped, and 70,000 people with no right to be here removed. “We know there’s more to do on this complex issue. What is far less complicated is Nigel Farage’s brazen attempts to dodge scrutiny over his secret £5 million gift from a crypto billionaire. "It’s time he stopped the distraction tactics and came clean with the public.”