Overview
- Government data shows 5,430 foreign national offenders were returned in the year to October 2025, a 12% year-on-year rise that includes enforced and voluntary returns.
- The early removal scheme accounted for about 2,706 returns, up from roughly 1,560 in the Conservatives’ final full year.
- Weekly early removals peaked at 114 in September, averaging around 16 per day at that high point.
- Despite higher removals, September 2025 figures still recorded 3,719 foreign nationals on remand and 6,691 sentenced in custody.
- Independent oversight has flagged safety and drug-use problems linked to transfers into immigration detention, with reports that some detainees wishing to leave were prevented by policy.