Nigel Farage’s party proposed to place detention centres in places that vote for Green council leaders or MPs

And here is some more comment on social media on Reform UK’s detention centres plan (see 10.48am).

From Fraser Nelson, the Times columnist and former Spectator editor

Another significant evolution in Reform’s style of politics. Its proposed internment camps will only be built in parts of the country that vote for its rivals.

This is a new departure for UK politics: rejecting the idea of PM-for-all and instead a new partisan style.

I think most British people believe in the basic principle that no matter who you vote for, the government will treat you equally under the law. Yusuf’s plan to put detention camps in Green voting areas violates that. It is trolling as public policy and I think will damage Reform

The practical and legal problems seem insuperable. No non Reform local council would agree to it. So it’s not really a serious policy.

The biggest concentrations of illegal migrants are almost certainly in the cities. You shouldn’t confuse them with the asylum seekers being accommodated in hostels. It’s likely that potential Green voters are already living among them.

There is rather inadvertent warped logic that a rival party said to favour “open borders” would mean ‘support detention centre’

While the party favouring mass deportations at unprecedented scale means ‘oppose detention centre’ anywhere nearby

These statements could have unwelcome legal consequences for a hypothetical Reform government - which may need to show that decisions which happen to match this pattern were chosen for other legitimate policy reasons, not as partisan political punishment/reward

A hypothetical future government with a thumping majority could have the powers to repeal any treaties, conventions or laws which may constrain this.

A hypothetical minority government could find itself impeded by these kinds of public statements about the motive for locating detention facilities

A more logical version of this school sixth form debating society policy might have the opposite design

* Mass Detention in Reform-voting areas proud to vote for deportations + detentions

Reform have launched a website with this “incentive” to voters in an effort to generate profile & controversy in election week