Peers have delayed the passing of Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda Bill until next week in the latest blow to the Prime Minister’s small boats plan, Sky News reports.
On Tuesday MPs rejected an attempt by the House of Lords to soften the plan, however, now peers have proposed even more changes to the proposed new law.
The House of Commons is expected to consider the changes on Monday next week, dashing the 10th MP’s hopes of holding it today.
Downing Street is unwilling to concede on points that peers are trying to change, including the treatment of people who have served in or for the British armed forces overseas.
The Rwanda Security (Asylum and Immigration) Bill was introduced last year after the Supreme Court ruled that the previous scheme to deport asylum seekers who came to the UK illegally was unlawful.
The current bill seeks to declare Rwanda safe and prevent the courts from considering the country’s safety during appeals. This is being done under a new treaty agreed between the UK government and the Rwandan government.
Speaking earlier on Wednesday, the Prime Minister’s spokesman ruled out the possibility of a deal on any of these changes. He said:
We are not considering concessions. We believe the bill as it stands is the right bill and the quickest way to get flights off the ground.
Of the four amendments added on Tuesday, three were introduced by Labour and one by Crossbencher. The proposed changes seek to ensure that the bill is in line with domestic and international law; Rwanda is not declared safe until a report is produced; security appeals are allowed and exemptions will be allowed for people who have served in or on behalf of the British armed forces.
The amendment on people who helped the armed forces was at the centre of a fierce debate, with the government saying it was waiting for a report on the Afghanistan Resettlement and Assistance Policy (ARAP) before determining its moves.
However, Labour’s shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said:
Tory MPs just voted to insist that Afghan interpreters who served British armed forces can be sent to Rwanda. A scheme which costs £2m per asylum seeker. A £500m plus scheme for less than 1% of asylum seekers. Which now includes those who worked with our troops. Shameful and shambolic.
Johnny Mercer, a former soldier and the government’s veterans’ affairs minister, responded:
My team have worked night and day to find permanent accommodation for circa 25,000 Afghans who the UK have provided sanctuary to, without you lifting a finger to help. We want them to use safe routes, not undertake lethal channel crossings. Your concern is fake.
