The British Supreme Court has ruled that the government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda is unlawful because they would not be safe.
The UK’s highest court issued its unanimous judgement on Wednesday, stating the government’s planned scheme could put asylum seekers at “risk of ill-treatment” because they could be sent back to their home countries once in Rwanda.
The decision deals a major blow to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s planned immigration policy and a key election promise as he readies for an election next year.
The ruling drew a rebuke from Rwanda, with a government spokesperson saying it takes issue “with the ruling that Rwanda is not a safe third country for asylum seekers and refugees.”
Britain and Rwanda signed a deal in April 2022 to send some migrants who arrive in the UK across the English Channel to the East African country, where their asylum claims would be processed and, if successful, they would stay. No one has yet been sent to the country as the plan was challenged in the courts.
The Rwanda scheme is the central plank of Sunak’s immigration policy, as he has promised to stop migrants arriving without permission by boat to the south coast of Britain.
The UK receives fewer asylum-seekers than many European nations, including Germany, France and Italy. Thousands of migrants from around the world travel to northern France each year in hopes of crossing the Channel.
More than 27,300 migrants have crossed the Channel this year, with the year’s total on track to be fewer than the 46,000 who made the journey in 2022.
