Sunak Vows ‘No More Delays’ as Lords Back Monitoring of Rwanda Deportation Policy. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak admitted on Monday that the first deportation flight sending asylum seekers to Rwanda will not take off until at least July, acknowledging a further delay to the controversial policy even as lawmakers engaged in a final day of heated debates.
According to The Guardian, Sunak told a press conference that the flights taking migrants to the East African nation would not begin for another 10 to 12 weeks, despite previously promising they would occur in the spring.
“Enough is enough,” Sunak was quoted as saying. “No more prevarication, no more delay. Parliament will sit there tonight and vote no matter how late it goes. No ifs, no buts.”
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The prime minister blamed the delays on opposition in the House of Lords, accusing Labour peers of “using every trick in the book” to block the flights through amendments.
As reported by The Telegraph, the government plans to have 200 trained case workers, 150 immigration judges and 25 courtrooms ready to deal with any legal claims from migrants trying to prevent their deportations once the policy is implemented.
The debates came as the House of Lords backed by 240 votes to 211 a requirement that Rwanda cannot be treated as safe for deportations until the Home Secretary makes a statement to Parliament after consulting an independent monitoring body, according to The Guardian. 
However, the Lords did not insist on an exemption for Afghan nationals who assisted British troops, which critics hailed as a concession.
Sunak has put the Rwanda scheme at the center of his promise to stop people crossing the English Channel in small boats, despite warnings the threat of deportation may not deter desperate asylum seekers.
As reported by Reuters, the prime minister said the policy would only be considered a success “when the boats have been stopped…That’s what the country expects.”
However, critics have questioned the scheme’s efficacy and cost. The United Nations’ refugee agency reiterated its opposition, saying it “remains profoundly concerned” over the policy’s consequences.
Yvette Cooper, Labour’s home affairs spokesperson, told The Telegraph the plan was “unworkable” and would only cover “one per cent of asylum seekers” at a cost of £500 million to taxpayers.
Suella Braverman, the former home secretary, was quoted saying the Rwanda Bill was “fatally flawed” and still vulnerable to challenges from the European Court of Human Rights.
As the parliamentary battles rage on, the number of migrants arriving by small boats across the Channel has increased 24% to 6,265 in the first four months of 2024 compared to the same period last year, according to Home Office figures cited by The Telegraph.
With both houses of Parliament digging in their heels, the protracted political impasse leaves the future of the UK’s controversial deportation policy stuck in limbo, at least until the summer.
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