Farage demands Mahmood resign after two charged over terror plot

Nigel Farage issued Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood a resignation ultimatum after two small-boat migrants were charged with terror offences, raising pressure on the government over migration and security.

Farage demands Mahmood resign

Officials said Salam Ahmadyan, 36, from Liverpool, and Rahman Salehi, 34, from Salford, were arrested in the Manchester area and later charged with terror offences. Officials said the men are Iranian nationals who arrived in the UK via small boats in 2020 and 2023; one had been granted asylum and the other has a live asylum claim.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said he had repeatedly warned of threats entering Britain by illegal routes and added: "We now have a state of national emergency on our borders, and this Government is trying to open them to even more unknown individuals." He went on: "If this Home Secretary disagrees, she must resign."

The ultimatum deepens a partisan dispute over border policy and counterterrorism coordination. Officials said the arrests will prompt parliamentary questions and further scrutiny of asylum processes; ministers have not yet announced an immediate response.

Watch for a government reply and any parliamentary motion over the next 48 hours; if Shabana Mahmood does not respond publicly in that window, the dispute is likely to escalate into sustained opposition pressure.