British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak ‘s latest effort to send some migrants to Rwanda finally won approval from Parliament early Tuesday, hours after he pledged deportation flights would begin in July. The parliamentary logjam that had stalled the legislation for two months was finally broken just after midnight when the unelected House of Lords “recognized the primacy” of the elected House of Commons and dropped the last of its proposed amendments, clearing the way for the bill to become law.
Quick Read
- Parliamentary Approval: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s plan to deport certain migrants to Rwanda has finally cleared Parliament, enabling deportation flights scheduled to begin in July.
- Legislative Breakthrough: The legislation was stalled for months due to opposition in the House of Lords, but it advanced after the Lords acknowledged the primacy of the elected House of Commons, dropping their amendments.
- Public Announcement: Sunak emphasized at a press conference that the government would push through this legislation to address the issue of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats.
- Continued Legal Challenges: Despite parliamentary approval, the plan faces potential further delays due to anticipated court challenges against the deportations.
- Political Stakes: Sunak has closely tied his political future to this initiative, aiming to fulfill his promise to “stop the boats” amid falling polls for his Conservative Party.
- Human Rights Concerns: The plan has been criticized by human rights advocates as illegal and inhumane, with ongoing vows from migrant advocates to fight against the deportations.
- Preparations Underway: In anticipation of the bill’s passage, the government has chartered planes, expanded detention facilities, and increased immigration staffing to facilitate the deportation process.
- Defiance of International Court: Sunak stated that the UK would proceed with the deportation flights regardless of potential blocks from the European Court of Human Rights.
- Safety of Rwanda Bill: The new legislation was introduced following a UK Supreme Court decision that previously blocked deportation flights over safety concerns for the migrants sent to Rwanda.
- Tragic Timing: News of the bill’s passage coincided with the reported deaths of at least five people attempting to cross the English Channel, highlighting the dangerous conditions faced by migrants.
The Associated Press has the story:
UK Parliament approves Rwanda deportation bill, ending weeks of legislative stalemate
Newslooks- LONDON (AP) —
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak ‘s latest effort to send some migrants to Rwanda finally won approval from Parliament early Tuesday, hours after he pledged deportation flights would begin in July. The parliamentary logjam that had stalled the legislation for two months was finally broken just after midnight when the unelected House of Lords “recognized the primacy” of the elected House of Commons and dropped the last of its proposed amendments, clearing the way for the bill to become law.
Earlier in the day, Sunak held a rare morning press conference to demand that the Lords stop blocking his key proposal for ending the tide of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats, promising that both houses of Parliament would remain in session until it was approved.
The legislative stalemate was just the latest hurdle to delay implementation of a plan that has been repeatedly blocked by a series of court rulings and opposition from human rights activists who say it is illegal and inhumane. Migrant advocates have vowed to continue the fight against it.
“For almost two years, our opponents have used every trick in the book to block fights and keep the boats coming,” Sunak told reporters Monday morning in London. “But enough is enough. No more prevarication, no more delay.”
The government plans to deport to Rwanda some of those who enter the United Kingdom illegally as a deterrent to migrants who risk their lives in leaky, inflatable boats in hopes that they will be able to claim asylum once they reach Britain.
Despite Parliament’s approval of the legislation, further court challenges may still delay the deportation flights, said Tim Bale, a politics professor at Queen Mary University of London.
“I don’t think it is necessarily home and dry,” he said. “We will see some attempts to block deportations legally.”
Sunak has staked his political future to the deportation flights, making a pledge to “stop the boats” a key part of his pitch to voters as opinion polls show that his Conservative Party trails far behind the Labour Party ahead of a general election later this year. Next week’s local elections are seen as a barometer for how the parties will fare in the general election.
The debate in Britain comes as countries throughout Western Europe and North America look for ways to slow the rising number of migrants as war, climate change and political oppression force people from their homes.
Small boat crossings are a potent political issue in Britain, where they are seen as evidence of the government’s failure to control immigration.
The number of migrants arriving in Britain on small boats soared to 45,774 in 2022 from just 299 four years earlier as people seeking refuge pay criminal gangs thousands of pounds (dollars) to ferry them across the channel.
Last year, small boat arrivals dropped to 29,437 as the government cracked down on people smugglers and reached an agreement to return Albanians to their home country.
“I think the most important takeaway is quite how desperate the government clearly is to get this piece of legislation through on the grounds that it will enable it to at least make a down payment on its promise to stop the boats,” Bale said.
While Sunak acknowledged that he wouldn’t meet his original deadline of getting the first deportation flights in the air this spring, he blamed the delays on continued resistance from the opposition Labour Party.
On Monday, Sunak said the first flights would take off in 10-12 weeks but refused to provide details about how many people would be deported or exactly when the flights would occur because he said that information could help opponents continue to try to frustrate the policy.
In preparation for the bill’s approval, the government has already chartered planes for the deportation flights, increased detention space, hired more immigration caseworkers and freed up court space to handle appeals, Sunak said.
He also suggested the government was prepared to ignore the European Court of Human Rights if it sought to block the deportations.
“We are ready, plans are in place, and these flights will go come what may,” Sunak said. “No foreign court will stop us from getting flights off.”
The current legislation, known as the Safety of Rwanda Bill, is a response to a U.K. Supreme Court decision that blocked the deportation flights because the government couldn’t guarantee the safety of migrants sent to Rwanda. After signing a new treaty with Rwanda to beef up protections for migrants, the government proposed the new legislation declaring Rwanda to be a safe country.
The bill has been stalled in the idiosyncrasies of the British legislative system. The House of Lords is charged with scrutinizing and offering amendments to measures approved by the House of Commons, but it doesn’t have the power to block legislation outright.
As a result, the Rwanda bill bounced back and forth between the two houses of Parliament, with the Lords repeatedly offering amendments only for them to be rejected by the Commons, which then sent the legislation back to the upper house.
Critics of the government’s policy refused to be drawn on their next move. James Wilson, the director of Detention Action, which campaigns against human rights abuses in the immigration system, urged the public to look past the political stalemate and remember what is at stake.
“Ultimately, the most important points here are not the ins and outs of Parliament, and the things that are happening there,” he told The Associated Press. “In the end, this is about people. This is about people’s lives.”
At least 5 people have died while crossing English Channel, hours after UK approved deportation bill
PARIS (AP) — At least 5 people have died while crossing the English Channel, according to French media, hours after the U.K. approved the migrant deportation bill.
The Voix du Nord newspaper said the bodies were discovered at the Wimereaux beach in northern France on Tuesday. The rescue operation is ongoing and helicopters and boats have been deployed, according to the regional newspaper.
About 100 migrants have been rescued and placed aboard a French navy ship. They will be taken to the port of Boulogne, the paper said.
This came only hours after British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s latest effort to send some migrants on a one-way ticket to Rwanda finally won approval from Parliament. The U.K. government plans to deport some of those who enter the country illegally as a deterrent to migrants who risk their lives in leaky, inflatable boats in hopes that they will be able to claim asylum once they reach Britain.
Human rights groups have described the legislation as inhumane and cruel. Both the United Nations refugee agency and the Council of Europe called on the U.K. Tuesday to rethink its plans for fears they could damage international cooperation on tackling the global migrant crisis.
Migrants trying to cross the busy English Channel face drownings and sinking among other deadly incidents, often aboard crowded boats.
An estimated 30,000 people made the crossing in 2023, according to U.K. government figures.
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