It was a cornerstone of the migration policy of the defeated Prime Minister Sunak: the asylum pact with Rwanda. But under the new government of Keir Starmer, the plan has no chance.
Britain will not deport irregular migrants to Rwanda. The new Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the controversial plan of his conservative predecessor Rishi Sunak was “dead and buried”. The plans were just symbolic politics, Starmer said at a press conference in Downing Street in London.
The leader of the social democratic Labour Party had already announced during the election campaign that he would stop the Rwanda programme.
Sunak wanted to deport people who came to the UK without the necessary papers to the East African country, regardless of their origin. They were to apply for asylum in Rwanda; a return to the UK was out of the question. Opponents of the plan saw this as a breach of international obligations.
Every year, tens of thousands of people reach the British coast irregularly across the English Channel, mostly in small boats. Accommodation in hotels and other accommodation costs taxpayers billions. Sunak’s conservative government relied on the Rwanda plan to deter migrants. Recently, however, the number of arrivals has risen again.
The deal with Rwandan President Paul Kagame, whom critics accuse of human rights abuses, has so far cost British taxpayers several hundred million pounds. In return, no migrant was deported to East Africa against his will.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
