Britain Rwanda bill set to become law

LONDON – UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda bill will finally become law after a parliamentary showdown ended late in the night on Monday.

Plans to send some asylum seekers to Africa had met with fierce criticism, but the bill passed on Monday when the Lords dropped their opposition.

Sunak said in a statement “nothing will stand in our way” now of getting flights off the ground but the scheme could still be held up by challenges in the courts.

The BBC reported that ahead of the bill passing, the prime minister said flights to Rwanda would take off within 10 to 12 weeks, missing his original spring target.

Sunak called the passing of the Rwanda bill “not just a step forward but a fundamental change in the global equation on migration”.

He said: “We introduced the Rwanda bill to deter vulnerable migrants from making perilous crossings and break the business model of the criminal gangs who exploit them.”

A lawyer representing some of those who could potentially be sent to Rwanda have suggested there may be other routes to stop flights taking off.

Nicholas Hughes, a solicitor in the Rwanda litigation team at law firm Duncan Lewis, represents dozens of people who were affected by flights in 2022, and said they were likely to represent clients selected for potential future flights to Rwanda.

Asked how certain he was that he would be able to prevent clients being sent to Rwanda, he said: “We’ll do everything we can.”

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