Newly-appointed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had serious doubts about the plan to send migrants to Rwanda for processing when he was Chancellor of the Exchequer, according to documents seen by the BBC. The documents show Sunak was concerned about the cost of sending migrants to Rwanda and the effectiveness of the scheme. The papers also suggest he was reluctant to fund reception centres to accommodate migrants in preference for using cheaper hotels or private housing.
The deal to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda to deter people from crossing the English Channel in small boats, was announced by Boris Johnson in April 2022 while Sunak was still Chancellor. The documents, prepared in March 2022, indicate a significant difference of opinion between No 10 and 11 Downing Street, with Sunak wanting to scale back the plans.
The deal has been delayed by legal challenges, and despite it being ruled unlawful by the UK Supreme Court, Sunak has made the Rwanda plan one of his top priorities since becoming Prime Minister in October 2022. However, some MPs on the right of his party have urged him to go further to meet his goal of stopping migrants crossing the Channel, potentially leaving the European Convention on Human Rights.
The revelations about Sunak’s doubts regarding the plan are likely to be embarrassing for him, especially as he vetoed reception centres in favour of hotels which were costing 3.5 million pounds per day at that point. The papers suggest the Treasury preferred sending migrants to be housed around the country, known as “dispersal”. In response to the revelation, a Labour MP and shadow home secretary accused the Tories of “going for gimmicks rather than ever getting a grip”.
Despite the ongoing challenges, the government insists that the policy would deter people from arriving in the UK through “illegal, dangerous or unnecessary methods”, such as on small boats across the English Channel. The first flight was scheduled to go in June 2022 but was cancelled after legal challenges. However, Sunak continues to praise the policy as one of his key priorities, and is now pushing forward with legislation to make it possible to send people to Rwanda
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