British House of Lords delays Chunak plan to extradite to Rwanda

Photo: Pixabay/Steve Bidmead

LONDON: British Prime Minister Chung has promised that the first illegal immigrants will be deported to Rwanda in the spring. But his plan goes awry.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's plan to deport irregular migrants to Rwanda has suffered another setback. Parliament's second chamber, the House of Lords, voted on Wednesday against the conservative government's desire to make several amendments to controversial legislation aimed at declaring Rwanda a safe third country.

The draft, which is now intended to prevent appeals to the courts in Great Britain, must be debated again in the House of Commons. However, this is unlikely before Parliament takes its Easter break on Tuesday. This jeopardizes Sunak's promise to deport the first migrants to East Africa in the spring.

The conservative government wants to deport to Rwanda anyone who enters the country without the necessary documents, regardless of personal circumstances. They must seek asylum there – but return to Great Britain is impossible. Critics such as Amnesty International, but also many members of the House of Lords, accuse the government of breaching international obligations with the plan.

On Wednesday, a majority in the upper house voted in favor of a motion that, among other things, the law “formally takes into account” national and international law. An amendment was accepted that Rwanda would be considered a safe third country only if all the agreements of the bilateral agreement with Great Britain were in force. Parliament is sure to reject these changes. In a kind of ping-pong process, the two chambers must fight for a final legal solution.

Prime Minister Sunak is under heavy pressure from the right wing of the party to stop irregular migration. The asylum deal with Rwanda, intended to prevent crossing the English Channel in small boats – has so far been unsuccessful. More than 3,500 people reached British shores in this way this year.