Home Office spent almost £9m on deportation charter flights in 2020

At least 828 people were removed on charter flights last year, more than double the number removed in 2019

The Home Office spent almost 9m on deportation charter flights last year, the Guardian has learned, including more than 500,000 for planes that never left the tarmac.

At least 828 people were removed by air, more than double the 410 removed on similar charters in 2019. The department spent 8.2m on 47 charters to 24 countries in 2020, with 18 of those countries in Europe.