British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has taken a decisive step for his political survival. After two days of high tension at the Palace of Westminster with heated debates, closed-door negotiations and loud resignations, MPs passed the controversial bill to deport migrants to Rwanda on Wednesday evening, January 17th.
With the return to the ranks of the dissidents, the text was approved at third reading in the House of Commons with 320 votes in favor and 276 against.
Well ahead in the Labor polls at the start of the election year, Rishi Sunak has thrown his full weight behind this project, which aims to show his resolve on a key issue among his base but which highlights divisions will have revealed its majority, the moderates fear an attack on international law and the most right-wing forces want to go even further.
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This text is intended to respond to the objections of the British Supreme Court, which found the project in its previous version to be illegal due to fears, in particular, for the safety of asylum seekers transferred to Rwanda. According to the project, the latter, regardless of their origin, would have their files checked in Rwanda and would then under no circumstances be able to return to the UK since, if successful, they would only be able to obtain asylum in the African country.
Resignation of two Tory vice-presidents
During the review, dozens of Conservative MPs unsuccessfully supported amendments aimed at tightening the text and, in particular, restricting migrants' right to appeal their expulsion. Tensions also grew after the resignation on Tuesday of two Tory vice-presidents who took a harder line and received the support of former Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
This project, announced by the latter in April 2022, aimed to stem the flow of migrants in small boats across the English Channel: almost 30,000 in 2023, after a peak of 45,000 in 2022.
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This weekend, five migrants died while trying to reach a boat in freezing water. On Wednesday morning, other boats were seen attempting this dangerous crossing, an Agence France-Presse photographer noted.
But the text has never been implemented. A first plane was blocked at the last minute by a decision from European courts, then the British courts up to the Supreme Court declared the project illegal in its original form.
New contract with Rwanda
In order to save its text, which was heavily criticized by humanitarian organizations, the government signed a new contract with Kigali. It is supported by this new draft law, which defines Rwanda as a safe third country and prevents the return of migrants to their countries of origin. It is also proposed that certain provisions of UK human rights law should not apply to expulsions in order to restrict legal recourse. The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said on Wednesday that the latest version of the project was “incompatible with international law”.
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Just over a year after entering Downing Street, Rishi Sunak is counting on the success of this project to show that he is capable of keeping one of his key promises: to end the arrival of migrant boats on British shores set .
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His bill now needs to be approved by unelected members of the House of Lords, who could well change it. And if it is passed in time for the general election scheduled for the autumn, the Labor Party, led by Keir Starmer, has promised to repeal it if it comes to power after fourteen years in opposition.
Too much tightening could also weaken the partnership with Rwanda, which has already received almost 240 million pounds (280 million euros) from the United Kingdom. “This money will only be used if the [migrants] come. If this is not the case, we can return it,” assured Rwandan President Paul Kagame in an interview on Wednesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
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