The UK's top border chief has been sacked after claiming hundreds of high-risk flights landed without risk.
David Neal was ousted after losing the confidence of Home Secretary James Cleverly.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “We have terminated the appointment of David Neal, the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, after he breached the terms of appointment and lost the confidence of the Home Secretary.
“The planned recruitment process for the next Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration is in progress.”
Home Secretary James Cleverly removed David Neal after he criticised UK border force over alleged security failings
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Neal and Cleverly were at loggerheads just hours before the sacking after the border boss claimed hundreds of high-risk flights landed in the UK without security checks.
The spat made its way to the House of Commons today, with Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper warning the Government had been “repeatedly warned about border security risks on private flights”.
She added: “The Prime Minister may just think it’s all his own mates but there are real risks from organised crime, money laundering, drugs, weapons smuggling, trafficking and even terrorism.”
Legal Immigration Minister Tom Pursglove was put up to respond to the concern.
Pursglove insisted Border Force performed “checks on 100 per cent of scheduled passengers arriving in the UK and risk-based intelligence-led checks on general aviation”, adding: “It’s deeply disturbing that information which has no basis in fact was leaked by the independent chief inspector to a national newspaper before the Home Office had the chance to respond.
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Border Force check the passports of passengers arriving at Gatwick AirportGETTY“We are urgently investigating this breach of confidential information in full in the normal way.”
Pursglove also said: “The security of the UK border is a top priority for me, for the Home Secretary and for the Home Office.
“Everything we do in this area is designed to reduce risks to this country and its citizens.”
Neal, who was informed of his sacking just weeks before he was scheduled to step down, submitted his report to the Home Office last week.
He warned of “dangerous” failings by the border force that were allowing “high-risk” aircraft to land in Britain without security checks.
Tom Pursglove addressed questions about the situation in Parliament
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Neal added that checks were not being carried out on hundreds of private jets arriving at a prominent London airport.
The Home Office was emphatic as it categorically rejected the claims, arguing Neal “has chosen to put misleading data into the public domain”.
Neal submitted 13 reports to the Home Office in the past year but they remain unpublished.
Responding to news of Neale's sacking, Cooper said: “This is total Tory chaos on borders and immigration.
“A series of Conservative Home Secretaries have sought to bury uncomfortable truths revealed by the Chief Inspector about our broken borders, and shockingly they are still sitting on 15 unpublished reports - stretching back to April last year. The Home Secretary must now publish those reports in full.
“The Conservatives have lost control of our borders, are seeking to hide the truth, and are putting border security at risk.”
