Should we deport foreign nationals convicted of any imprisonable offence within 5 years of arrival?

UK law requires the Home Office to consider deporting foreign national offenders, with automatic deportation for sentences of 12 months or more. In practice, returns are often delayed by appeals, human rights claims under the ECHR, and backlogs, with thousands of foreign criminals remaining in the UK or being released into the community each year. Recent migrants include small boat arrivals and visa overstayers, many of whom claim asylum and face barriers to swift removal even after convictions.