UK, Rwanda look forward to 1st migrant deportation flights in spring

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Rwandan President Paul Kagame are looking forward to the first flights under the UK's controversial plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda departing in the spring, according to a statement Tuesday.

Although his flagship Rwanda plan suffered a series of legal challenges, Sunak seeks to relocate asylum seekers who arrive in the UK via small boats each year to the East African country.

During a meeting in London early Tuesday, Sunak and Kagame discussed the plan, which is also called the UK and Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership.

The statement, released by the Prime Minister's Office, noted that Sunak updated the Rwandan president on the next stages of the legislation in parliament.

"Both leaders looked forward to flights departing to Rwanda in the spring," it added.

Last month, Sunak saw another setback as the House of Lords, or upper house of parliament, passed five amendments on his new Rwanda bill.

The amendments, if ratified, would make it harder for the House of Commons, or lower house, to declare Rwanda a "safe" country and would require the government to comply with domestic and international law.

If enacted into law, the amendments would severely affect the main purpose of the new bill, as the demanded changes would make it easier for judges to challenge it.

In early January, most British lawmakers voted to back the controversial bill, which would allow the government to send asylum seekers to Rwanda.

In a major setback, however, the House of Lords voted to delay Sunak’s flagship UK-Rwanda immigration treaty in what was reportedly the first time it has voted against the ratification of a treaty for over a decade.

The bill aims to address the concerns of the UK Supreme Court, which ruled that the government's original plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda was unlawful.

The bill compels judges to regard Rwanda as a safe country and gives ministers the power to disregard parts of the Human Rights Act.

The Rwanda plan had been one of the most controversial plans of the government's migration policy as it sparked international criticism and mass protests across the UK.

In January last year, Sunak said that tackling small boat crossings by irregular migrants across the English Channel was among five priorities of his government as more than 45,000 migrants arrived in the UK that way in 2022.