UK government’s Rwanda asylum plan is unlawful, says Court of Appeal
The Rwanda deal has been ruled unlawful by the Court of Appeal in a new blow to Rishi Sunak’s pledge to “stop the boats”.
The plan to forcibly deport small boat migrants to the African nation has been blocked, with judges concluding it is not a safe country to receive asylum seekers from the UK.
The Court of Appeal had granted an appeal by asylum seekers selected for deportation after the High Court initially ruled in December that the plan was lawful.
The prime minister said the government would appeal the judgment to the Supreme Court, and that he “fundamentally disagreed” with the finding that Rwanda was not safe for asylum seekers.
But the process will take several more months and threatens the passage of the new Illegal Migration Bill, which aims to see small boat migrants detained and deported without asylum claims being considered.
Backed by the United Nations Refugee Agency, lawyers for the asylum seekers selected for deportation to Rwanda won their appeal on the grounds of its safety, but other arguments were dismissed.
A hearing in April was told that the Home Office had breached several legal duties in deciding that Rwanda was a safe country and that there was a risk they would be denied proper access to asylum.
The outgoing Lord Chief Justice, Lord Burnett, said: “The High Court’s decision that Rwanda is a safe third country is reversed. Unless and until the deficiencies in its asylum processes are corrected, removal of asylum seekers to Rwanda will be unlawful.”
Flights will remain suspended ahead of the final showdown at the UK Supreme Court.
