Home Office sacks immigration inspector after border claims

James Cleverly has tonight sacked the independent borders inspector after he voiced concerns about ‘high-risk’ aircraft landing in Britain without security checks. David Neal, the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, was due to leave his post on 21 March but has now been forced out a month early after publicly criticising the department. In a statement, the Home Office said that Neal ‘breached the terms of appointment and lost the confidence of the Home Secretary.’

Neal had served in the role since March 2021. He reportedly had his reappointment blocked by Downing Street, in an unusual move given that his predecessors all served two full three-year terms in the post. His dismissal comes less than 48 hours after he decided to publicly voice his criticisms with the Home Office. He provided departmental data to the Daily Mail on Monday which purported to show that the UK Border Force failed to check passengers on hundreds of private jets arriving at City Airport.