spouse of scouse

British 'convicts' transported to Australia were never offered passage back to Britain.

If they survived the appalling conditions of the voyage, and if they survived their forced labour and often brutal treatment in Australia, and if they were judged to have been of good behavior at the conclusion of their sentence, they were granted a Certificate of Freedom and were then free to return to Britain. If they could afford the fare, which obviously was out of reach of all but those who had wealthy families back home who could assist them.

Convicts who were deemed to have not been of good behavior through their sentence were denied their freedom, and instead were usually sent to the even more brutal penal colonies of Port Arthur and Norfolk Island.

If we adhere to the adage of learning from history, it's worth noting that the vast majority of convicts were transported for petty crimes.

DaveLovesDee

Given that Australia is no longer a British colony, but a country with it's own laws and immigration rules which make it difficult for most to immigrate there, good luck in getting them to accept those the UK government don't want here.

And someone else has already explained how you misunderstood what happened to those transported. Though given the differences in quality of life, I'd suggest the families of those penal colonists have made a much better go of what they were given.

Aren't most of us?

We have always (especially under EU law) been allowed to deport anyone on the grounds of public policy, public health or public security. What constitutes those categories is flexible.

If you're going to deport a foreign criminal for a particular offence, what would be the equivalent punishment for a UK national? I would suggest that as you're effectively banning the foreign national from the UK, withdrawing a UK national's passport to prevent them going abroad would be a better option than removing the Brit's citizenship (which the Home secretary can do without giving a reason) even where that Brit holds no other nationality

Of course they shouldn't use that power to remove someone for bad parking, but the rule is there and could be used if the Home secretary chooses to.

The laws are already there to remove undesirables, but unfortunately as I'm not the Home secretary, I can't use them to deport the entire Tory party

As you're apparently flouncing, you won't be reading this, but learn that not everyone who disagrees with you is wrong.

formula

It just the same old same old. Decent people will be glad that criminals can be sent back to their own country. Criminals and their families will not like that criminals can be sent back to their own country.

Editha

When you've lost an argument, it is comforting to be gratuitously offensive. Do you feel better now?