Home Office rents hangar for deportation practice.

Authorities will receive training in executing deportations, including managing individuals who resist physically.

The Home Office has secured an aircraft hangar and plane fuselage to train security personnel in deportations, aligning with the UK government’s rising forced removals. Officials announced the capacity boost on Friday, confirming training expansion for handling deportations, including resistance. The Times initially reported the program’s extension.

The longstanding specialized training will also be provided to personnel involved in deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda. This aligns with the government’s initiative to initiate flights to the central African country by spring.

A spokesperson from the Home Office stated, “Since 2015, the government has maintained training facilities to equip escorts with the necessary skills to professionally handle the complexities of removing individuals without the right to be in the UK. This involves practical sessions to ensure escorts are adept at managing various scenarios.

As removal activities increase, we will continue to ensure that new escorts have access to the required training facilities.

According to a government source, the department recently secured the hangar and fuselage for staff to practice escorting individuals onto planes and learn how to respond if they resist, either through physical confrontation or refusal to cooperate.

This occurs as the government steadily rises in the number of deportations, rebounding from a sharp decline during Covid and facilitated by the new returns agreement with Albania. In the year ending March 2023, Britain forcibly repatriated 4,193 individuals, marking an increase of nearly a third compared to the preceding 12 months.

Confirmed sources indicate that the training will extend to security officials involved in flights to Rwanda, aligning with ministerial efforts to initiate the first flight in the upcoming spring.

This week, Members of Parliament approved the Rwanda bill without modifications. However, it faces a two-month debate period in the House of Lords before returning to the Commons for further consideration of any amendments. Chancellor Rishi Sunak has emphasized the deportation scheme for asylum seekers to Rwanda as a central element in his strategy to curb small boat crossings across the Channel.

The Prime Minister stated on Friday, To comprehensively address this issue, we require a deterrent so that individuals arriving here unlawfully cannot remain and will be repatriated. That’s why the Rwanda scheme is crucial, and I am committed to navigating it through parliament swiftly to address this issue effectively.