At an emergency press conference, Rishi Sunak said his new Rwanda law would prevent prosecutions and allow him to fly finally to Rwanda, The Guardian reports.
The Prime Minister said the bill “fundamentally” addressed the apex court’s concerns over deportation policies and ensured the African country is “unequivocally” safe for asylum seekers.
His irate remarks followed a chaotic 24 hours in which his immigration minister, Robert Jenrick, quit over the proposed new law, claiming it did not go far enough. The move was a major blow to the prime minister’s authority, who has come under increasing pressure from the right-wing Tories.
Releasing rebels from the Tories to vote against him, Sunak said he would not see the legislation as a vote of confidence in his leadership. With Labour already saying it would oppose the plans, it would only take 29 Tory MPs to vote against it.
Sunak said the legislation would be an “effective deterrent” to people coming to the UK illegally and would restore public confidence in the system in an attempt to contain a growing right-wing rebellion in the Conservative Party.
Sunak repeated his warning that if the European Court of Human Rights intervened to stop flights after the law was passed, it would “do whatever is necessary” to make the scheme work. In doing so, he hinted to right-wing Tories that he might consider withdrawing from the European Convention on Human Rights altogether.
Jenrick stepped down on Wednesday after it emerged that legislation prevented the government from overturning international laws that prevent it from sending asylum seekers to Rwanda, meaning the new law is likely to be challenged in court.
Sunak has appointed two ministers to deal with the issue, splitting it into two parts in an attempt to emphasise the importance of migration to his Tory project. Michael Tomlinson will become Minister for Irregular Migration and Tom Pursglove will become Minister for Legal Migration and Service Delivery.
Earlier on Thursday, Suella Braverman, the fired home secretary, said of the bill:
“The reality and sorry truth is, it just won’t work”.
Braverman again warned Sunak of the “stalemate” the Conservatives are in, given his pledge to stop the boats earlier this year. She said the Tories were facing “electoral oblivion” unless ministers blocked all legislation used to stop deportation flights.
The emergency bill would give ministers the power to ignore some Strasbourg court rulings on asylum, but would not allow the European Convention on Human Rights to be completely withdrawn or “abrogated”.
