Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
more exotic criminals Are Being deported from Britain Analysis of government data shows that efforts are being made to free up space in jails.
According to Ministry of Justice (MoJ) figures, there were 10,772 foreign nationals in custody in June this year – 12 per cent of the total prison population.
In an effort to get foreign criminals out of jail faster, ministers introduced legislation this summer to allow foreign prisoners to be deported after serving 30 per cent of jail time instead of 50 per cent.
Now, analysis of MoJ figures has revealed that the number of prisoners being released from the country early is rising.
number of foreign nationals criminals People removed from the UK (FNOs) have increased by 12 per cent year-on-year, according to transparency figures published by the government this month. About 5,430 FNOs were returned by October 2025, compared to 4,861 last year. This includes both enforced and voluntary returns.
Of these, 2,706 returns have been made under the expedited removal scheme. That’s a 2 percent increase compared to the same period 12 months ago, government data shows.
This is up from 1,569 in the last full year of the Conservative government, according to Labor analysis. Labor said evictions had increased by 74 per cent compared to two years earlier.
However, the increase in expulsions has not had much impact on the total number of foreign nationals in custody. Data for September 2025 showed that there were 3,719 foreign nationals on remand in prison, and 6,691 sentenced criminals.
Of these, 3,626 were on remand and 6,450 were sentenced in September last year.
As part of a desperate effort to reduce overcrowding in prisons, foreign national criminals have been transferred from prisons to immigration detention sites.
This has led to male immigration detention centers becoming increasingly unsafe, while drug use, which has rarely been a problem in the centers in the past, has become a major concern.
A report by the Independent Monitoring Board, which oversees prisons and detention centres, revealed earlier this year that foreign criminals wanted to book their own flights to leave the UK, but Home Office policy prevented them from leaving.
Justice Secretary David Lammy told MPs on Tuesday that “our prisons are in a dire state” and said removing foreign national criminals from the estate was “a topic the public cares deeply about”.
Jake Richards, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Sentencing, said: “This Labor Government is taking radical action to deport overseas criminals. Deportations are increasing, and our changes are ensuring they happen earlier and faster than before.
“We will move forward by rebalancing how human rights law is enforced at home and making changes internationally to ensure criminals cannot abuse our laws.”