UK Parliament approves expulsion of migrants to Rwanda

British Parliament approved a bill to remove illegal migrants seeking asylum in the UK to Rwanda. The legality of this method has been debated for several years.

According to the bill, which was actively promoted by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, anyone who illegally crossed the English Channel would be deported from the UK to Rwanda. There the migrants will await a British decision on asylum. The deportation order can be challenged in court.

The bill will come into force after it is signed by the British King Charles III. This is expected today, April 23. According to the authorities’ plans, the first flight with migrants will depart from the UK in July. There are about 350 asylum seekers on the British Home Office’s lists, who are least likely to receive it.

Discussions around the law on the deportation of illegal migrants have been going on since 2021. In April 2022, the UK and Rwanda entered into a deal under which Kigali will accept migrants, and London will invest millions in the development of the African country. The UK has already transferred £140 million to Rwanda, but the first flight with migrants, which was supposed to take place in June 2022, was canceled at the last minute by a decision of the ECHR.

In November 2023, the UK Supreme Court ruled that the expulsion of migrants to Rwanda violated the European Convention on Human Rights, which prohibits inhuman and degrading treatment. Critics of the bill have repeatedly noted that political refugees in Rwanda could be at risk. The bill is also called “ineffective, unjustifiably cruel and expensive.”