London: In a big setback to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s government, the UK’s Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected plans to send migrants to Rwanda as unlawful as it would put them at risk.
Issuing a unanimous judgement, the country’s highest court said that the policy would put asylum seekers at “risk of ill-treatment” as they could be sent back to their home countries once they land in Rwanda.
Sunak, who has vowed to stop migrants reaching Britain in small boats across the English Channel, said the ruling “was not the outcome we wanted”.
“We have seen today’s judgment and will now consider next steps. This was not the outcome we wanted, but we have spent the last few months planning for all eventualities and we remain completely committed to stopping the boats,” he said in a statement.
The Prime Minister, however said that his “commitment to stopping the boats is unwavering”.
“The Government has been working on a new treaty with Rwanda, and we’ll finalise that in light of today’s judgment. If necessary, I am prepared to revisit our domestic legal frameworks,” Sunak wrote on X on Wednesday.
The development comes just after sacked Home Secretary Suella Braverman, in a searing letter, accused Sunak of betraying his pledge to do “whatever it takes” to stop small boats crossing the Channel.
Braverman said that the PM had no “Plan B” if the government lost the Supreme Court case.