Keir Starmer talks tough on borders, but the only thing he’s smashing is the public’s trust. Keir Starmer stood at his podium today with the smug confidence of a man who thinks the British public has the memory of a goldfish and the critical faculties of a sponge.

“We will take back control of our borders,” he declared with solemnity, as if this was some bold new revelation rather than the reheated rhetoric of a man who spent years actively undermining every attempt to do exactly that.

Illegal boat crossings have exploded under Starmer’s Labour government. Up more than 40% this year alone. The gangs aren’t being “smashed” — they’re thriving. They’ve never had it so good. Demand is booming, and as Britain heads into a patch of warm weather, they’re rubbing their hands with glee.

Calm seas, clear skies, and a wide-open door courtesy of Starmer’s Home Office. He says he’s shutting down the “open borders lab.” But who does he think built it? Who helped fund the equipment? Starmer and his Labour were the ones who cheered on open borders. This is the man who signed letters opposing the deportation of foreign criminals.

The man whose MPs voted against stricter immigration rules only weeks ago. And now, he’s standing there pretending to be the tough guy? Please. It is a remarkable audacity — an egregious insult — to anyone paying attention.

Starmer’s promise to “smash the gangs” is nothing more than a hollow soundbite. While he postures for the cameras, migrants continue arriving by the thousands, ushered in by people smugglers who know full well the odds of staying in Britain are better than ever.

If they make it across, they’re welcomed into the taxpayer-funded embrace of four-star hotels, given legal support, food, shelter, and the kind of deference many British citizens could only dream of. This isn’t border control. This is a red carpet for illegal immigration.

His new so-called “crackdown” is riddled with caveats and contradictions. Yes, the white paper includes measures to delay citizenship — from five years to ten — but who cares about that when the primary problem is the arrival of illegal migrants in the first place? We don’t need to worry about when they get citizenship.

We need to stop them getting here at all. Starmer says he's introducing tougher English language rules. Great. But how does that stop a dinghy full of young men from Albania or Eritrea arriving tomorrow morning? It doesn’t. It’s a headline- grabbing distraction.

Meanwhile, he’s still refusing to support a cap on migration numbers. He’s still opposed to removing the Human Rights Act from immigration cases — the very tool that allows foreign criminals and illegal arrivals to play the system and avoid deportation. And as for the so-called drop in net migration? He’s trying to take credit for a reduction that’s only happened thanks to Conservative reforms he opposed. That’s like an arsonist boasting that the fire brigade finally put out the flames he lit.

Let’s not be fooled. Starmer is playing both sides — mouthing tough talk while quietly appeasing the open borders brigade in his party. He doesn’t believe in border control. He believes in optics. He believes in saying whatever he thinks will get him through the next news cycle.

The truth is under Keir Starmer, Britain’s borders are more porous, our national integrity is more at risk, and the criminal gangs exploiting the Channel are booming. And if you believe for a second that his latest announcement is anything other than political theatre, you’re exactly the kind of voter he’s banking on.

Don’t buy the lie. Keir Starmer’s immigration “crackdown” is a con job — and the British people deserve far better. Britain didn’t vote for open borders or open lies — it’s time to shut the door on Starmer’s deceit.