The Supreme Court has this morning concluded that the Rwanda scheme is unlawful, ending 18 months of legal battles in UK courts. In a succinct 10-minute summary, the court ruled against the flagship scheme because of the risk that genuine refugees could be returned to countries from which they have fled.
Delivering the verdict, Lord Reed, the Supreme Court’s President, said that there are ‘substantial grounds to believe asylum seekers sent to Rwanda would be at real risk of refoulment’ – that is being sent to their home nations – something which happened under a ‘similar’ deal with Israel between 2013 and 2018.
The Supreme Court judges were ‘unanimously of the view’ that the Court of Appeal was right to have previously declared the deal unlawful, and that the High Court – which ruled it lawful last December – ‘made a mistake’ by failing to give proper consideration to evidence from the UN Refugee Agency. Reed noted that the Supreme Court is ‘required to decide’ whether the policy is ‘lawful’ – adding that it is a ‘legal question’ and the court is ‘not concerned with the political debate’ about the scheme.
He did however add that the basis for this judgement was not just the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) but multiple UK laws and international treaties which commit to the same principles. This is an important point at a time when some Conservative MPs are questioning Britain’s commitment to the ECHR and arguing for a referendum on it in the forthcoming election manifesto.
Today’s ruling is a major blow to Rishi Sunak’s government. It comes just two days after Suella Braverman was fired as Home Secretary, with the Tory right-winger now likely to lead calls for Britain to opt out of the ECHR. The one chink of light for the Prime Minister is that the court has left open the possibility of sending claimants to other countries. But how feasible is that really before an election?
Ministers had hoped that Rwanda would serve as a deterrent to asylum seekers, arriving on small boats from across the Channel. The scheme has already cost £140 million and not one asylum seeker has left the UK under it. Now it looks like none ever will.
‘This was not the outcome we wanted’, said Sunak in reaction to the judgement, ‘but we have spent the last few months planning for all eventualities and we remain completely committed to stopping the boats.’ More of those plans will be heard later today, when he takes questions at a Downing Street press conference.
Listen to James Heale, Katy Balls and Kate Andrews discuss the Supreme Court verdict on Coffee House Shots below.
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