Reform UK hopeful calls for 'concentration camps' for asylum seekers
Undercover footage also captures aspiring MP stating Muslims cannot be British.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
More evidence has come to light following an undercover investigation into Reform UK (Picture: Lewis/SOPA Images/Shutterstock)
Photograph: Metro News (embedded from source)
What this story says
- An aspiring Reform UK MP, Jason Powell, was recorded by an undercover ITV reporter suggesting asylum seekers should be put in 'concentration camps'.
- Powell also stated that it is impossible to be both Muslim and British, describing the two as 'like oil and water'.
- Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has stated that there is no room for racism in the party and that investigations are underway into inappropriate behaviour by activists.
- Previous ITV reporting exposed Reform candidates using offensive language, including referring to Black children as 'animals'.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 6 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 1 of the 7 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
60/100
Craft
65/100
Hype
45/100
7 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
Only 1 of the 6 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
An undercover investigation by ITV has captured an aspiring Reform UK MP, Jason Powell, suggesting that asylum seekers arriving in Britain should be placed in 'concentration camps'. Powell, who told the reporter he had passed vetting checks to become a Reform parliamentarian, also stated that it is impossible to be both Muslim and British.
Powell's recorded remarks included: 'Anyone who comes across on a boat, as an example, in the first week of [the] election, build concentration camps, and everyone who comes across on the Channel, you’re in there. They just need to be rounded up, every single last one of them, and sent to those concentration camps and then be given an ultimatum.' He also said, 'You cannot be a Muslim and British. It’s like oil and water.'
Reform UK's response
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage stated that 'there is no room for racism in Reform' and that the party has opened investigations into cases where activists or members had 'clearly behaved inappropriately'. Reform UK said in a statement that while vetting procedures have been improved, 'one cannot vet a future comment'.
What the coverage left out
None of the left-rated, centre-rated, or right-rated reports printed below mention the specific detail from Metro News that Jason Powell stated he had passed vetting checks to become a Reform parliamentarian.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 4 times, most recently on 18 Oct 2026, 01:15, and will add the sides that appear.
How other outlets pictured it
Which photograph to run is each newsroom’s own choice. The leaning beside a name is that outlet’s published rating, not a claim that the pictures divide along it. Every picture is shown from the outlet’s own server and links to the article it ran in.
Reform UK hopeful calls for 'concentration camps' for asylum seekers
Evening Standard — embedded from source
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
4 rated outlets
- Four left-rated reports led on the aspiring MP's comments about concentration camps and Muslims not being British. Metro News, in its full report, quoted Powell extensively on both subjects. The National and The Independent (US) also highlighted the 'concentration camps' remarks in their headlines. The Independent (US) and The Independent also mentioned the 'oil and water' comment regarding Muslims and British identity. Metro News also detailed other controversial remarks made by Reform UK councillors, including one who described Black children as 'animals'.
Centre
1 rated outlet
- The centre-rated Evening Standard's headline focused on the aspiring Reform UK MP's call for asylum seekers to be placed in 'concentration camps'. Its report also included Powell's statement that Muslims cannot be British and quoted Reform UK's response regarding investigations and the absence of racism in the party. The report also noted previous accusations of 'appalling behaviour' and 'extreme racism' within Reform UK.
Right
1 rated outlet
- The right-rated Daily Express headline stated that a Reform activist said channel migrants 'should be put in concentration camps'. Its digest also noted the aspiring MP's comment that Muslims could not be British.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Reform UK hopeful calls for 'concentration camps' for asylum seekers?
- Of the 6 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 67% are rated left, 16% are rated centre, 17% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 7. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Reform UK hopeful calls for 'concentration camps' for asylum seekers left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 6 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of Reform UK hopeful calls for 'concentration camps' for asylum seekers biased?
- Reform UK hopeful calls for 'concentration camps' for asylum seekers is one event reported by 7 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting Reform UK hopeful calls for 'concentration camps' for asylum seekers?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered Reform UK hopeful calls for 'concentration camps' for asylum seekers?
- 7 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- What did the aspiring Reform UK MP say about asylum seekers?
- An aspiring Reform UK MP, Jason Powell, was recorded by an undercover ITV reporter suggesting that asylum seekers arriving in Britain should be placed in 'concentration camps'. He stated they should be rounded up and sent to these camps with an ultimatum to return to their country of origin.
- What did the aspiring MP say about Muslims and British identity?
- Jason Powell, an aspiring Reform UK MP, stated that it is impossible to be both Muslim and British, describing the two as being 'like oil and water'. He indicated he would be happy if a Muslim was prepared to de-convert.
- What has Reform UK said in response to the allegations?
- Reform UK leader Nigel Farage stated that there is 'no room for racism in Reform'. The party has also said it has opened investigations into cases where activists or members have 'clearly behaved inappropriately', adding that vetting procedures have been improved but future comments cannot be predicted.
Read it at the source
7 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
4- Undercover footage captures Reform UK hopeful’s ‘concentration camps’ remarks (opens The National in a new tab)
The National — is The National biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Reform must 'build concentration camps', aspiring MP tells undercover journalist (opens Metro News in a new tab)
Metro News — is Metro News biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Reform activist says asylum seekers should be put in 'concentration camps' (opens The Independent (US) in a new tab)
The Independent (US) — is The Independent (US) biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Reform activist says asylum seekers should be put in 'concentration camps' (opens The Independent in a new tab)
The Independent — is The Independent biased? Our profile of this outlet
Centre
1Right
1Not rated
1How did this read?
About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.
