Rwanda-Asylpact cost Britain 830 Million Euro
The conservative government in the UK signs an asylum pact with Rwanda with the aim of preventing people from crossing the English Channel. However, the plan fails. The new Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, calls it now a "shocking waste of taxpayers' money".
The asylum pact signed between the former conservative government in the UK and Rwanda cost the taxpayer over 700 million pounds (approximately 830 million Euros), according to the new Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, in the Parliament in London. She described the program as "the most shocking waste of taxpayers' money I have ever seen".
The new Labour government under Prime Minister Keir Starmer scrapped the pact shortly after his party won the parliamentary election on July 4. The agreement stipulated that irregularly entered people into the UK would no longer be able to apply for asylum in the country. Instead, they would be taken to Rwanda and apply for asylum there, with no return to the UK planned.
This was intended to prevent people from making the dangerous crossing in small boats over the English Channel. However, human rights organizations questioned the alleged deterrent effect. No actual removals to Rwanda under the asylum pact ever took place.
Planned flight cancelled
A planned flight in the summer of 2022 was halted by the European Court of Human Rights at the last minute. Later, the British Supreme Court declared the plan unlawful. Rwanda could not be considered a safe country for refugees, the judges ruled then. Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak then introduced a legislative initiative through Parliament to legally declare Rwanda a safe country.
Initially, the flights were supposed to start in the spring of 2024. However, logistical issues caused delays. The government took a long time to find airlines willing to participate in the flights. Sunak eventually promised that the removals would begin in case of a victory in the summer elections.
Despite the cancellation of the planned flight and the British Supreme Court declaring the plan unlawful, the United Kingdom's former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak attempted to legally declare Rwanda as a safe country for refugees. This effort was part of the Conservative government's initiative to address asylum seekers entering the UK illegally and aiming to apply for asylum. This initiative, influenced by the Asylum Law, was a significant point of debate in the politics of Rwanda and the United Kingdom.
