As right-wing populism surges in the UK, critics warn of a dangerous descent into xenophobia

Cape Talk's John Maytham chats to News24 columnist, Phillip de Wet.

Listen to their conversation in the audio clip below: 

Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party has proposed a radical immigration plan that includes ignoring international law and forcibly returning migrants, even to countries where they may face torture or death. 

According to reports, Farage has suggested that his party would be prepared to deport 600,000 migrants over five years if it won power in the next election.

As his popularity surges in the polls, political commentators warn that Britain is flirting with a dangerous political shift that could see Farage leading the country and implementing his "send them back" agenda.

De Wet argues in his News24 column, that centrist and liberal voices have long failed to take people’s economic and social anxieties seriously, allowing populists to frame immigrants as scapegoats for everything from job losses to overwhelmed healthcare systems - despite evidence showing their limited impact.

He notes the disturbing global trend: from Operation Dudula in South Africa to Trump-era policies in the US and the growing far-right in Europe. 

The common thread? A politics of fear that threatens to erode human rights and compassion. 

"As things stand, there is the possibility that the majority of people in England, a country that prides itself on its human rights...and is very worried about the state of the world...may be willing to send people to torture and to death. They may be willing to say, enough, we have lost control of the situation, we don't care if we're putting those people on planes to die under an oppressive regime...something has gone terribly wrong if you're in that position."

- Phillip de Wet, News24 columnist

Scroll up to listen to the full conversation.