Brendan Clarke-Smith supports UK plans to send thousands of asylum seekers to Rwanda

Home Secretary Priti Patel has signed a world-first partnership with Rwanda, which may see asylum seekers who come to the UK illegally via the Channel be relocated to Rwanda.

In a speech today, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the Navy has been put in command of the English Channel as he defended the multimillion-pound scheme.

An initial £120 million is expected to be given to the Rwandan government under an economic deal, and the UK’s Ministry of Defence will receive £50 million to support funding for new boats, aerial surveillance, and military personnel.

Mr Clarke-Smith said: “This Conservative Government has done more than any other UK Government to resettle vulnerable people – but only by controlling illegal migration can we protect our capacity to expand that generosity and properly support people to rebuild their lives.

“That is why I welcome the UK’s new migration and economic development partnership with Rwanda – a fast growing economy that is recognised globally for its record on welcoming and integrating migrants, while we are providing generous protection to those directly fleeing the worst of humanity, by settling thousands of people every year through safe and legal routes.

“It is this Conservative Government that is delivering on the several votes of the British people to control our borders – not to close them.”

Asylum seekers who entered the UK ‘illegally’ are first due to receive formal notifications within weeks, and the first flights are expected to take place in the coming months.

Speaking in Kent today, Mr Johnson said: “From today, our new migration and economic development partnership will mean that anyone entering the UK illegally – as well as those who have arrived illegally since January 1 – may now be relocated to Rwanda.

“This innovative approach – driven by our shared humanitarian impulse and made possible by Brexit freedoms – will provide safe and legal routes for asylum, while disrupting the business model of the gangs, because it means that economic migrants taking advantage of the asylum system will not get to stay in the UK, while those in genuine need will be properly protected, including with access to legal services on arrival in Rwanda, and given the opportunity to build a new life in that dynamic country, supported by the funding we are providing.

“The deal we have done is uncapped and Rwanda will have the capacity to resettle tens of thousands of people in the years ahead.

“We are confident that our new migration partnership is fully compliant with our international legal obligations, but nevertheless we expect this will be challenged in the courts, and if this country is seen as a soft touch for illegal migration by some of our partners, it is precisely because we have such a formidable army of politically motivated lawyers who for years have made it their business to thwart removals and frustrate the government.

“So I know that this system will not take effect overnight.”