Rwandan asylum statute is passed by the UK, and PM Sunak promises that flights will begin in a few weeks

As the upper house of parliament finally enacted the necessary legislation on Monday, after weeks of delays due to attempts to change the plan, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged to begin transporting asylum seekers to Rwanda within 10 to 12 weeks.

In an attempt to turn around his Conservative Party’s declining prospects ahead of an election later this year, Sunak announced that the government has hired personnel and reserved commercial charter planes to transport migrants to Rwanda.

After a protracted refusal to support the divisive law without further safeguards, the House of Lords finally gave up after Sunak threatened to force parliament to convene as late into Monday night as needed to adopt it.

“There are no buts or ifs. “These flights are headed to Rwanda,” Sunak stated earlier on Monday at a press briefing.

Tens of thousands of migrants have traveled dangerously over the English Channel on small boats, coordinated by people-smuggling gangs, to reach Britain in recent years. Many of them were fleeing wars and poverty in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.

The government prioritizes stopping the flow, but some claim it is cruel to send them to Rwanda instead of processing asylum claims here.

They raise concerns about the nation’s record on human rights and the possibility that those seeking asylum could be sent to dangerous countries.

In an attempt to overturn a verdict by the Supreme Court that deemed the plan illegal, Sunak has passed a new law declaring that certain human rights statutes that now exist in the UK would not apply to the scheme and that British judges must consider Rwanda as a safe destination.

Additionally, it restricts people’s ability to appeal to only the most unusual situations.

Germany and Austria, among other European nations, are considering arrangements to handle asylum seekers abroad.

The elected lower house, the House of Commons, received the legislation back on Monday. There, legislators made the adjustments suggested by the Lords, and then the top body had another look at it.

Some Labour and independent peers wanted the bill to create a committee to oversee the safety of asylum seekers in Rwanda and to add protections for Afghans who had previously assisted British forces. However, the Act eventually passed the last parliamentary stage without any official modifications thanks to the Lords.

Later this week, King Charles is anticipated to grant the legislation royal assent, after which it would become a law.

Sunak stated that an airfield was built, plane slots were reserved, and 500 employees were prepared to escort migrants “all the way to Rwanda” prior to the Act being implemented.

Any asylum seeker who enters Britain illegally will be transferred to Rwanda under a plan the government claims will discourage Channel crossings and destroy the people smugglers’ economic model. This is in accordance with the policy that was developed two years ago and agreed upon with Rwanda.

The team supporting Sunak is hoping that the pre-election vow will help him reverse his electoral losses, especially with Conservative supporters who aren’t sure they want to see more immigration.

He had earlier stated, without providing an exact timeframe, that he anticipated the policy will be in effect by spring.

Polls indicate that Labour, which has promised to abandon the plan if it gets power, will handily defeat his Conservative Party in this year’s election. Labour said it will negotiate a return of some immigrants to continental Europe with the European Union.

Sunak might still have to deal with legal challenges to the measure even after he successfully navigates legislative obstacles.

The trade union that represents border force employees has promised to argue that the new legislation is illegal “within days” of the first asylum seekers learning they will be transported to Rwanda. Charities and human rights organizations have stated they will work to block individual deportations.

Lucy Gregg, acting head of advocacy at Freedom from Torture, said in a statement: “We urgently need the UK government to start treating refugees with decency and stop trying to send them away to an unsafe future in Rwanda.”