Tony Abbott has suggested the UK should put migrants "on a mothership" and send them to France as the country faces what he called "a peaceful invasion".

The former Australian prime minister was speaking at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester when he was asked about the immigration policy he enacted in Australia when he was in power.

The Abbott-led Liberal government enacted Operation Sovereign Borders soon after their election in 2013, which cracked down on asylum seekers travelling to Australia on boats.

Abbott said the UK should look at adopting some of the policies and strategies used by Australia as migration by boat continues to be a key issue in Britain's politics.

Some of his suggestions included "establishing processing centres in British dependent territories … as

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