Tories Demand Stronger Action as Labour’s National Inquiry Stalls
The Conservative Party has unveiled proposals to strip British citizenship from dual nationals convicted of child grooming offenses and deport them, even if they were born in the UK. The announcement comes amid growing criticism of Labour’s stalled national inquiry into grooming gangs.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp made clear the party’s hardline stance, stating there should be “no exceptions” for dual nationals convicted of such crimes. The policy would apply regardless of whether offenders were born in Britain, marking a significant expansion of existing deportation powers.
“We don’t want these people in our country,” Philp declared. “If they have citizenship from another country, then they should be deported and their British citizenship should be removed. No ifs, no buts.”
The proposals include imposing visa restrictions and withholding foreign aid from countries that refuse to accept deported offenders, with Pakistan specifically mentioned as an example.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch also called for mosques to be legally compelled to cooperate with officials investigating grooming gangs. She outlined her vision for a comprehensive statutory inquiry that would “leave no stone unturned,” including examining the ethnicity and religion of offenders.
The policy announcement highlights existing frustrations with deportation processes. Rochdale grooming gang members Adil Khan and Qari Abdul Rauf were stripped of British citizenship and ordered deported to Pakistan nearly a decade ago after being convicted of sexually assaulting 47 girls, some as young as 12. However, both remain in the UK because Pakistan has refused to accept them.
The Conservatives’ proposals could potentially affect approximately 1.24 million dual nationals living in the UK, though the party indicated a broader policy framework would be announced “in due course.”
While the Home Secretary currently has power to remove citizenship from dual nationals when “conducive to the public good,” this authority is rarely exercised and frequently challenged in court.
The timing of the Conservative announcement coincides with difficulties facing Labour’s promised national inquiry. Since Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced the probe in June, progress has stalled. The final two candidates to chair the inquiry withdrew in October, and a group of survivors subsequently resigned from the victim liaison panel.
A government spokesman said officials hope to provide an update on the inquiry “shortly,” but the Conservatives accused Labour of having “completely failed to take action” on the issue.
The proposals represent a more aggressive approach than the Conservatives’ existing policy, which states that “foreign criminals should be deported and never allowed to return,” but does not specifically mandate citizenship removal for dual nationals.
