Criticism of Reform UK’s pledge to use Navy to stop small boats – politics live

Labour say plan is a ‘desperate attempt to distract from sleaze’ while a retired commander says it ‘lacks substance’The political saliency of the UK’s policies around illegal migration has risen since tens of thousands of people from Morocco crossed in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta last week, causing dozens of people to die (including by drowning or being crushed) and triggered a political crisis for Madrid. Spanish officials have subsequently said that almost all those who reached Ceuta on Thursday have since returned.Reform UK’s home affairs spokesperson, Zia Yusuf, said his party’s small boats plan was partly inspired by what