More countries are ready to follow Rwanda's lead and join our migrant scheme, says James Cleverly

James Cleverley, the home secretary, angered Conservative MPs by saying the Rwandan scheme was not a be-all and end-all. 34; Photo: AP

More countries are lining up to follow Rwanda's lead in accepting UK asylum seekers if the scheme works, James Cleverley told Conservative MPs on Tuesday evening.

The Home Secretary also warned that a new bill to protect Rwanda's flagship No. 10 scheme could be defeated in the House of Lords if the government decides to scrap European human rights laws in immigration matters.

The Home Secretary chaired the meeting around 30 MPs, mostly from right-wing parties, amid growing dissatisfaction among MPs over stalled politics in Rwanda and a record rise in net migration.

He angered right-wing MPs over the weekend by saying withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) risked undermining efforts to stop illegal immigration, said Rwandan politics was not the «be all and end all» and urged people not to get too hung up on him because it is part of a wider package of measures.

Mr Cleverley told MPs he was focused on making the Rwandan scheme work as a key element in a basket of measures that, taken together, have already cut the number of Channel crossings by a third compared to last year.

< p>“He said they have been discussing with a number of other countries the possibility of implementing Rwanda-style schemes and they are all waiting to see what happens with Rwanda. If Rwanda does win, there could be other candidate countries, and it won't just be Rwanda,” said one MP who attended the meeting.

The plan to scrap the ECHR could fail in the House of Lords

However, Cleverley also warned MPs that abandoning the ECHR for asylum claims, as proposed in the so-called «full» version of the Rwanda Bill, could lead to defeat in the House of Lords.

Right-wing Conservative MPs are under the impression that their favorite “full-fledged” option can be replaced by a compromise version of the “Goldilocks”.

It will be tailored so as not to be so «hot» or the hard line is that it was defeated by the Lords, but not so «cold» that the scheme fails to act as a deterrent to Channel crossings.

The middle option of abandoning the Human Rights Act, but not the ECHR, occurs. was presented as a compromise. But one New Conservative MP said: «Giving the House of Lords a veto over our Rwanda plan seems extremely naive.» However, a source close to Mr Cleverley disputed the claims. , saying all options remained on the table and under consideration. «One of the risks is whether you can get it through the Lords, but it would be a false impression to think something is not on the table,» the source said.

Mr Cleverley also sought to reassure members parliament that there was no disagreement between him and Immigration Secretary Robert Jenrick, who was deputy to sacked Home Secretary Suella Braverman and promoted a tough approach to immigration.