June 18, 2024
3 mins read

Farage proposes ‘freeze’ on immigration

Eurosceptic Mr Farage was a member of the European Parliament for more than 20 years until the UK left the bloc in 2020 and also led the Brexit Party and UKIP before founding Reform…reports Asian Lite News

Nigel Farage has said the 2024 general election “should be the immigration election”, as he launched his party’s proposals in south Wales.

The Reform Party leader said he wanted to see a “freeze” on non-essential immigration, which he blamed for NHS waiting lists and the housing crisis, saying other parties “would rather not discuss it”.

Seeking to differentiate his plans from Labour and the Conservatives, he insisted the document he unveiled in the bar of a community centre in Gurnos, Merthyr Tydfil, was not a manifesto but a contract.

He said: “If I say to you ‘manifesto’ your immediate word association is ‘lie’.”

Eurosceptic Mr Farage was a member of the European Parliament for more than 20 years until the UK left the bloc in 2020 and also led the Brexit Party and UKIP before founding Reform.

“Guess who’s back,” he quipped as he took to the stage.

Immigration was the main focus of the event, with Mr Farage claiming “Britain is broken” and “in decline culturally”, and that stopping immigration would “help us at least try to catch up”.

Acknowledging that Reform was a “very, very new” political party, he said they were not aiming to form the government at this election but instead work towards a potential 2029 victory.

“Our ambition is to establish a bridgehead in Parliament, and to become a real opposition to a Labour government,” he said, adding the other parties were ineffective, with the Tories “split down the middle”.

Farage repeatedly said he wants to create a “big, genuine mass movement of people” and “we need a good, strong opposition that can mobilise people in very large numbers”.

Five core pledges in the Reform UK manifesto include a freeze on “non-essential” immigration and the deportation of people crossing the Channel in small boats.

The party also believes “cutting back office waste” and giving tax breaks to doctors and nurses could lead to “zero” NHS waiting lists, and suggests axing income tax on earnings under £20,000.

Reform also wants to scrap Net Zero targets – aimed at tackling the climate crisis by minimising planet-warming gas emissions by 2050 – and instead turn to fossil fuels, with a promise to “unlock” the UK’s remaining oil and gas reserves.

The pledges also include leaving the European Convention on Human Rights.

Reform’s planned tax cuts would cost nearly £90bn per year, and spending increases would cost about £50bn per year, the party says.

However, Carl Emmerson, deputy director at the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), said “the package as a whole is problematic”.

He said: “Even with the extremely optimistic assumptions about how much economic growth would increase, the sums in this manifesto do not add up.”

On paying for personal tax cuts by reducing the interest paid on Bank of England reserves, the IFS said the amount raised would be “much less than half” the figure estimated by Reform and “as ever there is no simple free lunch”.

Tax Policy Associates’ Dan Neidle says Reform UK’s contract contains a total unfunded cost of at least £38bn.

ALSO READ-‘Security pact with US a bridge to NATO membership’

Previous Story

‘NATO in talks to put N-weapons on standby’

Next Story

Britain overtakes China as India’s fourth-largest export market  

Latest from -Top News

Turkey’s Jet Roars, West Watches

It is visible that Turkey is intentionally reducing reliance on U.S. and Western military imports, especially F-16s and the failed F-35 partnership, to achieve strategic independence….writes Ankit V In 2016, Ankara announced

‘Op Sindoor’ Team Wraps Up Saudi Visit

The visit reaffirmed the shared commitment of India and Saudi Arabia in the fight against terrorism….reports Asian Lite News Riyadh, May 30 (IANS) The Indian all-party delegation, led by BJP MP Baijayant

Visa Interview Pause Nearing End, Says US

India is the source country for the largest group of international students in the US and Bruce’s comments will be closely followed there….reports Asian Lite News The United States said the pause

No Talks Till Terror Ends: India to Pakistan

The MEA’s strong response came at a time when Pakistan, pushed on the backfoot by India’s decisive Operation Sindoor, has suddenly started talking about its intent on having peace talks with India….reports

BNP ramps up poll demand

Chief Adviser Yunus had earlier promised elections in December 2025, but the timeline has since been pushed back first to February 2026 and then to June 2026, fuelling suspicion and dissatisfaction among
Go toTop

Don't Miss

Beauty sector to be targeted over immigration

Labour has made border security one of its top priorities

Bodies of 27 immigrants recovered off Libyan coast

The Libyan Red Crescent said on that 27 bodies of