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MPs will begin voting on the government’s controversial Rwanda Bill this week as the bill enters its final stages in parliament.
The House of Lords will have the opportunity to debate the content of the Bill. about 50 fixes Many bills seek to strengthen compliance with international law.
Amendments approved by peers are then sent to MPs for debate and vote, but if MPs reject the amendment in a process also known as parliamentary ping-pong, Lords must send back new amendments. Can be done.
The Illegal Immigration Bill, which strengthened the government’s powers to remove asylum seekers, went through three such ping-pongs in 2023 before becoming law.
Ministers are seeking to introduce flights to Rwanda before the next election, but the amendments they are opposing are:
Providing evidence that Rwanda is a safe country
Baroness Shami Chakrabarti, a barrister, human rights activist and former director of rights group Liberty, has introduced several amendments that would require ministers to provide evidence that Rwanda is a safe country. submitted.
One of these amendments would require the interior minister to provide a “rebuttable presumption” (a legal term referring to a statement of fact based on evidence) that Rwanda is a safe country.
The second on this topic requires the interior minister to “consider all relevant evidence and issue a statement of satisfaction” that Rwanda is safe before deportations take place.
Another stated aim of Baroness Chakrabarti’s amendment is to restore the ability of the courts to consider whether Rwanda is safe and ensure the power to grant interim injunctions against deportation plans.
Crossbench peer Baroness Molly Meacher also tabled an amendment that would “lower the threshold for decision-makers to decide that Rwanda is not a safe country”.
Thoroughly comply with international law
Baroness Chakrabarti introduced an amendment that would require the Home Secretary to make a statement to Parliament and give both Houses an opportunity to consider it if Rwanda policy is found to be incompatible with international human rights law.
Several peers have also weighed in on amendments to make it clear that human rights law applies “in its entirety” to Rwandan law, something the government is trying to avoid.
Other proposed amendments focus on ensuring compliance with the Refugee Convention and the European Convention on Human Rights.
However, another amendment, supported by former EU chief negotiator Sir David Frost, specifies in more detail that the bill is exempt from both international and domestic law, stating that it is exempt from international law. The aim is to strengthen the exemptions for
Secure appointment of new immigration inspectors
Liberal Democrat peer Sir Paul Scriven proposed an amendment requiring the Home Secretary to submit a statement saying he was “satisfied” that an independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration would be able to monitor the bill. submitted.
The position is currently vacant after David Neal, who had held the position since March 2021, was fired last week after publicly criticizing border security measures at City Airport.
The amendment effectively prevents the bill from taking effect until his successor is appointed, which could mean a lengthy delay.
The Liberal Democratic Party claims that independent inspections are not possible for the time being.
Lords Party leader Lord Newby said in a statement: Our amendments mean that the Conservative Government will actually take responsibility for how it treats people who are eligible to be sent to Rwanda. ”
Protecting veterans from deportation to Rwanda
Labor colleague Sir Des Browne, who served as defense secretary under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, tabled an amendment seeking protection for those who supported British troops from being sent to Rwanda.
“This new provision will exempt people who have put themselves at risk by supporting the Armed Forces or by co-operating with or working for the UK Government overseas. It will also exempt partners and dependents. “exemption from deportation to Rwanda,” the amendment’s explanatory text states.
The amendment itself specifically refers to Afghan nationals brought in after Afghanistan came under Taliban control in 2021.
Giving Rwandan asylum seekers the option to return to the UK
Sir David Blunkett, a Labor colleague who served as home secretary under Tony Blair, has tabled an amendment to give people recognized as refugees the right to return to the UK.
“The proposed amendments… will ensure that people who have been granted refugee status are presumed to have the option of automatically returning to the UK and that refugee status will facilitate migration to the UK.” It is stated that.
Under Rwanda’s system, those who enter the UK illegally are sent to the country to have their claims processed and are then required to either settle in Rwanda or return to a third country.
Protecting child migrants from being sent to Rwanda
Lord Alfred Dubbs, a Labor Party member who came to Britain on the Kindertransport to escape Nazi persecution, supported an amendment calling for greater protection for child migrants under the system.
Both the law and the treaty provide that unaccompanied children cannot be forcibly returned to Rwanda.
However, Lord Dubbs’ amendments seek to give English courts full powers to consider legal challenges based on age assessments of unaccompanied children.
This would allow courts to block the deportation of asylum seekers if they may be under 18.