In a significant development in UK immigration policy, the government has published emergency legislation aimed at facilitating its flagship Rwanda policy. This move, set against a backdrop of ongoing legal and political debates, marks a significant moment in the UK’s approach to asylum and migration.
The Home Office’s announcement comes on the heels of Home Secretary James Cleverly signing a new treaty with Rwanda. This treaty and subsequent legislation are crafted to address the concerns raised by the UK’s Supreme Court, which last month ruled the plans to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda as unlawful. The policy, initially announced by then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson in April 2022, seeks to deter illegal Channel crossings.
The bill, requiring parliamentary approval, proposes to disapply sections of the Human Rights Act. However, it stopped short of meeting the demands of some Conservative MPs, who sought to override the entire Human Rights Act, the European Convention on Human Rights, the Refugee Convention, and all other international law. Former Home Secretary Suella Braverman has criticized the bill, labeling it “fatally flawed” and predicting prolonged legal entanglements.
The emergency Rwanda policy is the second instance within a year where the government has presented measures potentially conflicting with court rulings. The first was the Illegal Migration Act, which faced severe criticism in the House of Lords. Legal experts suggest that despite the new measures, the Supreme Court may still find them incompatible with human rights obligations, rendering them unworkable. The upcoming parliamentary debates and judicial reviews will be crucial in shaping the future of this significant policy shift.
Source: BBC