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Grant Shapps has insisted he is “immensely keen” to help Afghan heroes despite the government repeatedly blocking an amendment to the Rwanda plan that would exempt those who have served with British forces from being deported to the African country.
The defence secretary said there were already schemes in place to help those fleeing the Taliban regime as he rejected calls from a host of former Tory military figures to change course on Rwanda bill.
“I am immensely keen to ensure that people who supported us in Afghanistan are able to move here,” he told the BBC’s Radio 4 Today programme. “That’s why we have a programme of Afghans’ ability to come here, which has already brought 16,000 people here.
“The way to do that is legally – not be allowing people who have come here illegally via people smugglers to then stay here.”
The House of Lords last night snubbed fresh ministerial calls to back down in the tense stand-off over Rishi Sunak’s asylum plan – and insisted on a requirement that Rwanda cannot be treated as safe until promised protections are in place.
The fresh setback for means the wrangling will continue, after MPs again rejected amendments to the government’s flagship Rwanda Bill, renewing their battle with the Lords.
Peers had on Tuesday voted to amend the legislation for a third time, but MPs voted on Wednesday afternoon against four key amendments, including one to exempt asylum-seekers who aided UK troops overseas, such as Afghan special forces, from deportation to Rwanda.
Downing Street ruled out making concessions on its Safety of Rwanda Bill.
ICYMI: Defiant Lords back Afghan heroes and refuse to pass Sunak’s plan to deport asylum seekers
Peers voted on Wednesday night in favour of an amendment to the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill that would exempt Afghan heroes who supported UK troops overseas from being deported.
Full report:
MPs will consider Lords ammendments to Rwanda bill on Monday, Commons leader confirms
Commons leader Penny Mordaunt has said MPs will consider further Lords amendments to the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill on 22 April.
Further time will be made available in the Commons on 23 April if the Lords continue to make changes.
ICYMI: Home Office minister repeatedly ignores question on whether government has airline for Rwanda scheme
Watch: Minister repeatedly ignores question on securing airline for Rwanda flights
Watch as a Home Office minister repeatedly dodges questions on whether the government has an airline “ready” to take asylum seekers to Rwanda. Laura Farris appeared on Sky News on Tuesday 16 April to discuss Rishi Sunak’s flagship deportation bill, which is currently bouncing between the House of Commons and the House of Lords in parliament. The prime minister has repeatedly said flights to Kigali will take off by spring, but has refused to name a specific date. Reports have also suggested that Rwanda’s state-owned airline turned down a government proposal to transport asylum seekers because it wanted to avoid being associated with the controversial scheme. Ms Farris repeatedly sidestepped Kay Burley’s question about whether an airline has been secured as she spoke on Tuesday.
ICYMI: Britain to hand Rwanda £50m as soon as deportation bill becomes law, Home Office confirms
Full report:
Home Office confirms deal with Vietnam on strengthening efforts to tackle illegal migration
The Home Office has confirmed a new deal with Vietnam to strengthen collaboration on efforts to tackle illegal migration, including through deterrence communication campaigns and intelligence-sharing.
Vietnamese nationals made up 5 per cent of small boat arrivals in the UK in 2023, up from 1 per cent in 2022 but the same proportion as in 2021, Home Office figures show.
From 2018 to the end of 2023, there were 3,356 Vietnamese small boat arrivals, putting Vietnam in the top 10 source countries.
Cleverly accuses Labour of ‘politically cynical’ effort to scupper Rwanda plan
Home secretary James Cleverly accused Labour of a “politically cynical” effort to scupper the Rwanda scheme as peers dealt another blow to the asylum plan.
Labour said the government should stop wasting time and money on the “hare-brained scheme” which aims to send some asylum seekers on a one-way trip to Rwanda in order to deter people from crossing the English Channel in small boats.
Mr Cleverly said: “Terrified that the Rwanda scheme will work, and desperate to delay or disrupt over a hundred votes about stopping the boats, Labour have acted again to block the passage of the Rwanda Bill.
“It’s been another politically cynical effort by them, who have no alternative deterrent and no plan to tackle illegal migration, to frustrate the only solution on offer.
“We want to break the criminal people smuggling gangs and stop the boats. Labour, uncomfortable with tackling immigration, will clearly stop at nothing to stop the planes”.
Shapps insists there are already schemes in place to help Afghan heroes
Grant Shapps insisted there are already schemes in place to help Afghan heroes come to the UK as he sought to justify the government’s refusal to accept an amendment to the Rwanda bill that would exempt people who have served with British forces being deported to the African country.
Speaking to the BBC’s Radio 4 Today programme, the defence secretary said: “As defence secretary, I am immensely keen to ensure that people who supported us in Afghanistan are able to move here. That’s why we have a programme of Afghans’ ability to come here, which has already brought 16,000 people here.
When it was put to him that there were lots of other Afghan heroes who hadn’t been offered asylum, Mr Shapps added: “The way to do that is legally – not be allowing people who have come here illegally via people smugglers to then stay here.”
In full: Defiant Lords back Afghan heroes and refuse to pass Sunak’s plan to deport asylum seekers
Peers voted on Wednesday night in favour of an amendment to the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill that would exempt Afghan heroes who supported UK troops overseas from being deported.
Full report:
The Rwanda bill explained: What is the controversial policy and what happens next?
Last night the House of Lords again rejected the government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda.
But what is the Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, when was the idea conceived and how will it work if made law?
Here’s everything we know about the plan:
Shapps: Government will do ‘whatever we need to’ to get flights off to Rwanda
The government will do “whatever we need to do” to fly asylum seekers to Rwanda, Grant Shapps has said in response to the suggestion the RAF could be used for deportation flights.
Asked whether he would allow RAF aircraft to be used, the defence secretary told Sky News: “We will do whatever we need to do to make sure that we can get these flights off, whether they are charter flights or other kinds of flights.”
He added that which aircraft took asylum seekers to Rwanda was a “secondary issue”.
Source: independent.co.uk
