Reform UK’s immigration crackdown has been branded a “vote winner” for the party, as Zia Yusuf outlined his plans to the nation.
Speaking to GB News, broadcaster Clare Muldoon said although some of his policy makes her feel “uneasy”, the “majority of the electorate” will want his plan legislated.
Detailing his plans for Reform’s immigration policy, Mr Yusuf vowed to “secure our borders and stop the invasion”.
Reform’s Home Affairs Spokesman told a press conference: “Decades of Tory and Labour betrayal have broken Britain.
“There is a national security emergency at our borders, an epidemic of knife crime on our streets, public services collapsing under the weight of mass immigration and Islamist extremism being allowed to spread.
“Only Reform UK will do what is needed to fix our country. We will secure our borders, deport those here illegally, get the knives off our streets and make you feel safe.”
Delivering her verdict on Mr Yusuf’s speech, Ms Muldoon told GB News: “It’s got Reform written all over it, hasn’t really.
“They’re grabbing headlines as Reform do and they’re stoking the fire of immigration.”
Clare Muldoon has branded Zia Yusuf’s immigration crackdown a ‘vote winner’ among Britons
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GB NEWS / PA
However, Ms Muldoon admitted that the policy will attract a “winning” number of votes for the party.
She said: “I’m sure they will frame it for our security, for the security of the country, and it’ll stoke a lot of votes. I think it will be a vote winner for Reform.
“And I think a lot of their electorate will want that to be part of legislation.”
Criticising Reform’s proposed ban on visas for Pakistan, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Sudan and Syria, Ms Muldoon cautioned: “I’m very uneasy about it. I think when you start to put bans on things like this, I prefer it be a longer ban on more countries.
Zia Yusuf laid out his plans in a press conference today
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GB NEWS“Instead of just highlighting Pakistan for one, given the rape and the grooming gangs that we’ve been through in this country.
“And those poor girls, the victims of them, I think this is headline grabbing, and I don’t think it’s fair to play that point on the back of that.”
Weighing in on Reform’s policy, former Labour Adviser Matthew Torbitt argued that Mr Yusuf is “nicking Labour’s clothes” when it comes to immigration.
He told GB News: “I think actually, weirdly, you’d never expect me to say that they’re nicking Labor’s clothes on this policy, because Shabana Mahmood would no doubt champion the fact that she’s already doing this.
“She threatened Namibia and Angola with a similar sort of thing, said we’re going to freeze visas unless you take these people back that we believe don’t belong here anymore, and they saw results in that.
“So I suppose in that sense, the proof is in the pudding. It seems to have results.
Mr Torbitt told GB News that Reform is ‘nicking Labour’s clothes’ on visa freezes
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GB NEWS
He added: “And it seems odd to me that they’re still focusing on immigration. I think if you’re talking about immigration at the next election, you’re probably voting Reform.
“That’s pretty priced in that you’ve given up on Tories who had the Boris wave, as it’s now termed. Labour don’t seem to be acting on the boats and people feel very frustrated.”
Mr Yusuf also told the press conference that he backs a ban on “all face coverings in public” when asked by a reporter if he supported a Burka ban.
He told the press conference: “I personally support a ban on all face coverings in public.
“That’s actually a piece of legislation that has multiple bonuses to it, because it’s going to aid integrations, and it’s also going to help people feel safe.”