UK Supreme Court rules government plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda illegal

The senior magistrates confirmed the decision of the court of appeal which had ruled in June that Rwanda could not in its current state be considered a “safe third country”.

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British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak leaving Downing Street on October 25, 2023. (JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP)

This is a severe snub for Rishi Sunak. The British Supreme Court ruled illegal on Wednesday, November 15, the Conservative Prime Minister’s highly controversial plan to deport asylum seekers who arrived illegally in the United Kingdom to Rwanda. The senior magistrates confirmed the decision of the court of appeal which had estimated in June that Rwanda could not in its current state be considered as a “safe third country”.

This decision immediately spells the end of a flagship measure in Rishi Sunak’s policy to combat illegal immigration. Announced a year and a half ago, at the time by Boris Johnson’s government, the project to send migrants to Rwanda, whatever their origin, was never implemented. In June 2022, a first flight was canceled at the last minute after a decision by the European Court of Human Rights.

Rishi Sunak announced that the government was now counting “consider next steps” and argued that the Supreme Court “confirmed that the principle of sending illegal migrants to a safe third country is legal”. For his part, theThe Rwandan government, via a spokesperson, said “challenge the decision that Rwanda is not a safe third country for asylum seekers and refugees”.


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