No evidence to support Nigel Farage’s claim that small boat arrivals get new iPhones within 24 hours

In a speech during a Reform UK general election event on 28 May, Nigel Farage appeared to claim that people arriving in the UK on small boats get new iPhones within 24 hours of arrival.

Mr Farage was the party’s honorary president, but has today announced he will stand for election and become leader of Reform UK.

He said: “I’ve filmed […] people throwing their iPhones into the sea, throwing their passports into the sea, doing everything they can so we can’t track and identify them. Although it’s okay, because they get an iPhone, a new one, within 24 hours of arrival.”

It’s unclear what this claim about people getting a new iPhone is based on. 

Full Fact investigated a similar claim back in February and we found that the Home Office does not generally provide asylum seekers with phones, though there have been some exceptions.

Around 14,000 mobile phones were reportedly given to asylum seekers during the pandemic as immigration staff were unable to interview individuals face to face because of Covid-19 restrictions. However, this was a temporary measure.

Asylum seekers do not receive phones as part of their standard support package from the Home Office, though a number of charities do provide donated phones to new arrivals to make it easier for them to contact solicitors and monitor the progress of their claims. 

This means it’s possible some asylum seekers could end up with iPhones, though we’ve not seen any specific reports of this. If so, the phones are unlikely to be new as phones donated by charities appear to be typically second-hand, and donated phones are not available to everyone. 

We asked Reform UK for a source or evidence to support the claim, and we will update this blog if we get a response.

Image courtesy of Tron Le