On Tuesday, the parliament will debate the controversial plan of the United Kingdom to send migrants to Rwanda, testing the authority of leader Rishi Sunak right before the upcoming general elections. The Prime Minister, in power since October 2022, has staked his political future on reducing both regular and irregular migration to record levels. His Rwanda Immigration and Asylum Security Bill is crucial in fulfilling that promise.
However, the legislation has reopened divisions within the ruling conservatives, between those who consider themselves right-wing and the moderates, resulting in a struggle for Sunak to get it approved. Sunak’s plan is a response to a unanimous ruling by the UK Supreme Court in November, which declared that deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda is illegal under international law. The bill would require judges to consider Rwanda as a safe third country and proposes to grant powers to UK ministers to disregard sections of international and British human rights legislation.
Nevertheless, the bill has unleashed deep factional fights within the Conservative Party, not seen since the disputes over Brexit. Last month, Sunak faced rebels from his own party and narrowly won a parliamentary vote regarding the Rwanda legislation, and now he must do so again in a vote expected on Wednesday night.
First, MPs will debate a series of amendments to the bill starting on Tuesday. It is unlikely that they will be passed, but they will reveal the extent of the opposition Sunak faces. More than 50 Conservative MPs have publicly supported right-wing amendments that toughen the bill, including disapplying international law and restricting the rights of asylum seekers to appeal against their transfer to Kigali.
2024-01-16 10:00:01
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