debt, Toby Melville/PA
- author, Jennifer McKiernan and Ben Wright*
- roll, BBC News
One of the flagship programs of UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's government was approved in Parliament on Monday (22) night.
This is the controversial “Rwanda Plan” which restricts immigration. The text met with strong opposition and was debated in Parliament for five months.
The bill, aimed at deporting Rwandan migrants seeking asylum in the UK, will soon become law. The text mentions an African country 6,500 km away as a safe place to welcome these people.
In return, Rwanda would have to receive around £370 million from the UK over five years to participate in such a programme.
To become law, the plan must have the assent of the king.
Sunak said the flights to Rwanda with the deported migrants will depart within 10 to 12 weeks, from the end of June or the beginning of July.
But departures can be delayed in court or delayed in arranging flights for asylum seekers.
Home Secretary James Wise said the bill's approval was a “landmark moment” in the government's plan to “stop the boats” coming to the UK with migrants.
In a video posted on social media, he said: I promised to do everything necessary to pave the way for the first flight.
“Right now we're working day by day to get planes off the ground.”
The government's plans have been thwarted since November 2023, when the UK Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the Rwanda plan was illegal.
Earlier on Monday, the prime minister said planes were ready to take off once the law was passed and 500 staff were ready to take the migrants “all the way to Rwanda”.
“The plans are in place. These flights will happen no matter what,” he said, adding that he planned to put several flights in the air a month to create a “systemic deterrent” to immigration and “stop the boats”. come .
After some back-and-forth between the Lords and Commons chambers, MPs gave up on voicing their opposition to the plan.
In addition to the opposition, human rights groups strongly opposed the speech, saying it could threaten the rule of law and protect people against abuse of power by the state.
Freedom from Torture, Amnesty International and Liberty said in a statement: “We all deserve to live safe lives and seek protection when we need it most.”
“This shameful bill destroys the constitution and international law, while putting torture survivors and other refugees at risk of an insecure future in Rwanda.”
The project would greatly affect people who boarded small boats to cross the English Channel.
Deportations must take place before the UK government assesses whether applicants are genuine refugees – the asylum process is the plan to implement in Rwanda.
There are about 52 thousand people in this condition. Even if the government reaches a maximum of 15,000 deportations a year, it will take more than three years to clear them all, the last recorded in 2012.
Capacity has fallen sharply following budget cuts and Brexit, although it has recently reached 5,000 deportations a year.
*With information from Dominic Cassiani
