Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has announced he would scrap the United Kingdom's entire asylum system for five years if his party wins power, according to a report by The Independent.

The pledge represents one of the most radical immigration proposals put forward by a major UK party leader in recent years. Rather than reforming individual rules or adjusting quotas, Farage's plan would remove the existing asylum framework altogether for a five-year period.

What would the announcement change?

Under the proposal, the current asylum system — the legal process through which people can seek protection in the UK — would be abolished rather than amended. The Independent's report frames the plan as a full suspension lasting five years, not a temporary pause or a renegotiation of international obligations.

At this stage, the public reporting on the announcement does not detail:

• what legal mechanism a Reform UK government would use to suspend the system;
• how asylum claims filed during the five-year window would be handled;
• whether the UK would withdraw from or suspend participation in the 1951 Refugee Convention;
• how many people currently in the asylum pipeline would be affected.

These gaps mean the practical effect on applicants and claimants remains undefined until Reform UK publishes fuller policy documentation.

Who is affected?

The proposal directly concerns people seeking asylum in the United Kingdom and the government bodies that process their claims. If implemented, it would mark a break from the UK's post-war approach to refugee protection, under which claims are assessed individually against the criteria set out in domestic and international law.

For migrants and their advisers, the announcement is a policy signal rather than a change in law. Asylum rules in the UK remain in force, and any suspension would require Reform UK to win a general election and pass legislation through Parliament.

How does this fit Farage's immigration platform?

Farage has made immigration control the central theme of Reform UK's platform since the party's electoral breakthrough. The five-year suspension pledge escalates that agenda from tighter processing and removals — the ground occupied by successive Conservative governments — to the dismantling of the asylum system itself.

The Independent's headline positions the pledge conditionally: it would take effect only if Reform UK wins power. Current polling has made Reform UK a significant force in UK politics, but the party has not yet formed a government, and no election date tied to this announcement has been reported.

What should readers watch next?

Anyone following UK asylum policy should monitor official channels for concrete developments:

• Reform UK's published manifesto and policy papers, which would need to specify the legal route for a suspension;
• statements from the Home Office and the UK Parliament on any future legislation;
• the timing of the next UK general election, which determines whether the pledge could be tested.

Until then, the UK asylum system continues to operate under existing law. No rule has changed on the basis of this announcement alone.

Passport File will track this story as Reform UK releases further detail on how the proposed five-year suspension would work in practice.