At the end of last year, the UK’s Supreme Court ruled Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s plan to deport asylum seekers who had made the dangerous crossing to the African nation was unlawful.
But Mr Sunak has tried to revive the plan with additional measures – such as signing a treaty with Rwanda over its treatment of those sent there and defining it as a “safe country” – insisting it is a necessary deterrent to “stop the boats”.
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Opposition parties are widely opposed to the bill, with Labour calling it a “gimmick” and accusing the government of wasting money on the scheme that has yet to see one person be sent to Rwanda.
However, it has also led to splits in the Conservative Party, with right-wing factions demanding Mr Sunak toughen up the legislation to limit appeals further and to disapply international human rights law in order to see flights get off the ground.
Number 10 has yet to concede, and as a result, the rebel backbenchers have been putting forward amendments to the legislation and defying the government in the voting lobbies.
More amendments are being debated on Wednesday, and further votes will take place tonight, with more rebellions from the government’s own benches expected.
Since the beginning of the year, seven boats containing 263 migrants have crossed the Channel in small boats from France – not including the vessel spotted by Sky News on Wednesday.
Wes Streeting “crossed the line” by opposing assisted dying in public and the argument shouldn’t “come down to resources”, a Labour peer has said.
Speaking on Sky News’ Electoral Dysfunctionpodcast, Baroness Harriet Harman criticised the health secretary for revealing how he is going to vote on the matter when it comes before parliament later this month.
MPs are being given a free vote, meaning they can side with their conscience and not party lines, so the government is supposed to be staying neutral.
But Mr Streeting has made clear he will vote against legalising assisted dying, citing concerns end-of-life care is not good enough for people to make an informed choice, and that some could feel pressured into the decision to save the NHS money.
Baroness Harman said Mr Streeting has “crossed the line in two ways”.
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“He should not have said how he was going to vote, because that breaches neutrality and sends a signal,” she said.
“And secondly… he’s said the problem is that it will cost money to bring in an assisted dying measure, and therefore he will have to cut other services.
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“But paradoxically, he also said it would be a slippery slope because people will be forced to bring about their own death in order to save the NHS money. Well, it can’t be doing both things.
“It can’t be both costing the NHS money and saving the NHS money.”
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2:09
Review into assisted dying costs
Baroness Harman said the argument “should not come down to resources” as it is a “huge moral issue” affecting “only a tiny number of people”.
She added that people should not mistake Mr Streeting for being “a kind of proxy for Keir Starmer”.
“The government is genuinely neutral and all of those backbenchers, they can vote whichever way they want,” she added.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has previously expressed support for assisted dying, but it is not clear how he intends to vote on the issue or if he will make his decision public ahead of time.
The cabinet has varying views on the topic, with the likes of Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood siding with Mr Streeting in her opposition but Energy Secretary Ed Miliband being for it.
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The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill is being championed by Labour backbencher Kim Leadbeater, who wants to give people with six months left to live the choice to end their lives.
Under her proposals, two independent doctors must confirm a patient is eligible for assisted dying and a High Court judge must give their approval.
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2:30
Labour MP Kim Leadbeater discusses End of Life Bill
The bill will also include punishments of up to 14 years in prison for those who break the law, including coercing someone into ending their own life.
MPs will debate and vote on the legislation on 29 November, in what will be the first Commons vote on assisted dying since 2015, when the proposal was defeated.
Former CFTC Acting Chair Chris Giancarlo said he’s “already cleaned up earlier Gary Gensler mess,” shooting down speculation he’d replace the SEC Chair.