What does the pledge mean? 

The Home Office says the new Border Security Command, which Labour pledged in its manifesto to “create”, will “deepen ties between international and cross-government partners to disrupt the activity of people-smuggling gangs and ensure those profiting from it face justice”.

In a statement to Parliament on 22 July 2024, home secretary Yvette Cooper said the unit “will bring together the work of the Border Force, the National Crime Agency, the small boats operational command and intelligence and security officers”.

What progress has been made?

We’ve rated this pledge as “achieved” on the grounds that the Border Security Command now appears to have been created, with a commander appointed and funding allocated. 

The government published a press release announcing the launch of the Border Security Command on 7 July 2024. Former National Police Chiefs’ Council chair Martin Hewitt has been appointed Border Security Commander. 

In her statement on 22 July Ms Cooper said work had begun to recruit “hundreds of additional cross-border police, security and intelligence officers, and specialist investigators and prosecutors” and that the government had “immediately increased the UK presence in Europol and its European migrant smuggling centre”.

On 17 September 2024, the government announced that “up to £75 million” of funding initially allocated to the previous government’s Illegal Migration Act would be immediately invested in the National Crime Agency, the police and other law enforcement agency partners “as part of the new Border Security Command uplift”. 

On 28 October 2024, in a response to a written question in the House of Lords, the government said: “The Border Security Command (BSC) has been launched within the Home Office.”

A further £75 million in funding was announced on 4 November, alongside confirmation that the unit would consist of 300 staff.

The Home Office told Full Fact in early November 2024 that some members of staff who were previously working on the last government’s Rwanda policy have been redeployed to work on the Border Security Command.

It’s not entirely clear what further work needs to be done for the Border Security Command to be fully up and running, however. 

In particular, the King’s Speech stated the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill would have the result of “establishing a new Border Security Command”. This bill has not yet been published and it’s not clear how it will impact the Command’s operation. We asked the Home Office about this in November 2024 and did not receive a clear response, but we’ll update this page when we know more.