Controversial legislation allowing the British government to deport illegal immigrants to Rwanda will be enacted this week after being passed by the House of Lords on Monday night.
The Conservative Party rejected amendments to the text to reduce detention terms for unaccompanied children, strengthen protection for victims of modern slavery and postpone the deportation of immigrants by six months.
The upper house of parliament had proposed several amendments to the bill, which were referred and rejected by the House of Commons, in a process known as “ping pong”.
In the end, the opinion of the lower house prevailed, since it was made up of elected members. In a statement around midnight, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, critical of the government’s plans, ended up abandoning the proposed legislation to include a commitment to address the problem of refugees and human trafficking.
Welby agreed with the need to stop migrant crossings across the English Channel but, he added, “I don’t see how this is going to succeed and I haven’t heard anything that convinces me.”
“But that is the opinion of the other camera. I accept that, in the end, in most things, but in the most essential, this camera has to give in,” he admitted.
The end of the legislative deadlock, which lasted several weeks, paves the way for the Illegal Migration Law proposal to be promulgated this week by King Carlos III.
The legislation is one of Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s main moves to deter people from entering the country illegally on small boats that cross the English Channel.
Last year more than 45,000 arrived in the UK by that route, a record, compared to less than 300 in 2018. This year there are already around 13,000.
The legislation allows the Executive to expel any person who illegally enters the United Kingdom to the country of origin or to “a safe third country”, such as Rwanda, under an agreement already signed with that African country.
People who have entered the country illegally can also be forever banned from re-entering the country or applying for British citizenship.
The legislation overrides other human rights, allowing candidates to invoke the UK’s modern slavery laws to avoid deportation.
The legislation has been the subject of much criticism in the UK and by international organisations. A first flight to Rwanda in June 2022 was canceled following a decision by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR).
At the end of June, the British court declared the bill illegal, but the government appealed, pending a decision by the Supreme Court, the last judicial instance (equivalent to the Constitutional Court), later this year.
Source: TSF
