Iranian man becomes third migrant deported under UK-France deal

An Iranian man has become the third migrant to leave the UK under the government's "one in, one out" deal with France.

It follows the removal of an Eritrean man earlier on Friday after he lost a High Court bid to halt his removal, and the deportation of an Indian national on Thursday. The treaty with France was agreed in July and came into force last month.

It allows the UK to send back a migrant who crosses the Channel illegally in exchange for accepting the same number of migrants in France who have a valid asylum claim. The UK expects to receive the first asylum seekers under the scheme next week.

This morning's removal of the Eritrean came after a last-minute court bid to delay the departure failed. The Home Office lodged an appeal after the man was granted 14 days to make representations to support his claim that he was a victim of modern slavery.

The Home Office tightened rules around human trafficking claims to win the case after a "rapid review" of modern slavery legislation was launched to prevent its misuse. New Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood accused migrants who try to block their deportation of making a "mockery" of the UK's modern slavery laws.

Read More: How does the UK-France migrants deal work? The number of migrants arriving in the UK after crossing the English Channel has topped 30,000 for the year so far. It is the earliest point in a calendar year at which the 30,000 mark has been passed since data on the crossings was first reported in 2018.

The government has come under immense pressure to get a grip on the issue amid growing public anger. Ms Mahmood has vowed to do "whatever it takes" to end crossings.

A survey for Sky News last week found immigration is the top concern of voters for the first time since Brexit..