Conservative MPs warn the Prime Minister he faces an electoral “disaster” if he does not tackle illegal immigration. Photo: Leon Neil/Getty
Rishi Sunak will station Home Office officials in Rwanda as he tries to quell an escalating Tory rebellion over his small boat policy, The Telegraph reports.
Decision to send British officials to bolster the African country's asylum system could be seen as vindicating Suella Braverman, the former interior minister who pushed for the move while in government.
It comes after right-wing Tory MPs warned the Prime Minister he was facing an election. disaster» — including cutting the Tories to a «splinter» of 60 seats — if he fails to tackle illegal migration.
One MP said they believed there would be «dozens» of letters of no confidence in Mr. well, Sunak had already been submitted to the 1922 Committee of Conservative MPs.
The prime minister is expected to unveil a new treaty with Rwanda this week. response to a Supreme Court ruling that the scheme to deport illegal migrants into the country is illegal.
“As foolproof as possible”
A senior government source said preparations were being made to “increase the number of Home Office staff who will carry out training and help with cases in Rwanda to ensure their system is as robust as possible.”
The source said the Supreme Court decision will also be reflected in Rwanda's legally binding treaty obligation that it will not deport migrants under the scheme to third countries, which was one of the main concerns raised by the judges.
And they said the judges failed to take into account further progress in Rwanda's asylum system since the lawsuit began.
Sunak's plan to block legal challenges to his policies in Rwanda with a bill declaring the country safe has been met with ridicule in some quarters. Former Supreme Court judge Lord Sumption called it «defamatory» and suggested it was akin to the saying «black is white.»
However, a government source said: “When people like Jonathan Sumption say, not unreasonably, that Parliament can't make black white, they don't realize that in fact there has already been a year of extra work done with the Rwandan government to improve their processes, which we intend to go further and that the treaty itself will fundamentally change the nature of care for people in Rwanda.»
A second government source noted that some Office Representatives were already in Rwanda working on the new treaty.
New Home Secretary James Cleverley said ministers were “ready” for the Supreme Court decision.
“We are working on a new treaty with Rwanda, which will be ratified without delay,” he said. “This will ensure by law that those moving from the UK to Rwanda are protected from removal from Rwanda.”
“Deterrent effect”
Home Secretary says illegal migration is “immoral” and “unfair” » and said the Rwandan scheme was not a waste of time and money as it was already having a deterrent effect on potential migrants.
< p>However, Mr Sunak faces growing criticism from Tory MPs for that his policies do not go far enough.
Critics want Mr Sunak to strengthen his bill by including «notwithstanding» clauses that would strip human rights from the Human Rights Act, the European Convention on Human Rights and other international agreements — an approach championed by Ms Braverman.
Immigration Secretary Robert Jenrick has met with concerned MPs and is understood to be pushing for a broader approach to the bill.
Veteran MP Sir Bill Cash said: «Unless you tackle the problems comprehensively and use clear and unambiguous language in emergency legislation, then we will be embroiled in another problem with the courts.»
Unless the Government voluntarily strengthens legislation, it is believed that more than 40 deputies may rebel.
The Conservative MP said: «If they put forward a bill that doesn't pass muster, like-minded people will try to amend it to make it stronger… I don't think they realize the seriousness of the disappointment.»
Prime Minister's reaction The defeat in the Supreme Court has increased discontent in the parliamentary party, with some MPs suggesting that Sunak could even face a leadership problem.
A former cabinet minister said: «Some people's answer is that we are facing a disaster and how much worse can it get?»
«People are weighing whether changing our leader could make the situation even worse than it currently is.»
A right-wing MP said: «Anyone with a brain knows he can't stay in place.»
They said Mr Sunak «was 'Theresa May in trousers'» and that he would take the party to a «remainder» of «60 seats, or 70 if you're lucky».
Another MP said he «wouldn't be surprised if there was another problem» and a third said: «I think it's worth the chance.»
«Time is running out»
In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, Ms Braverman warned Mr Sunak he was «running out of time» to stop the boats ahead of the election.
Accusing him of thwarting her for months pass emergency legislation, she said. : «I'm very glad he's changed his mind in the last few days, but this has to be a significant change in the law and tweaking and tweaking won't help.»
She also suggested the Prime Minister had demonstrated a «lack of moral leadership» in response to pro-Palestinian protests and called for changes to the law to criminalize slogans such as «From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.»
In a column in The Telegraph last week, Ms Braverman said that in order for the flights to begin, Mr Sunak had to amend the agreement with Rwanda to address Supreme Court concerns about the country, including by “including British observers and independent experts to review the asylum decision”.
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