Rishi Sunak to hold Rwanda bill press conference after plan to stop small boat crossings survives Tory rebellion
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will hold a press conference at 10am after his controversial Rwanda bill passed its latest stage in parliament – despite rebellions from his own backbenchers.
The legislation – which aims to deter asylum seekers from making small boat crossings by threatening deportation to the African nation – passed its third reading in the Commons last night with a majority of 44.
But 11 Tory MPs, including former ministers Suella Braverman and Robert Jenrick, voted against the bill after days of attempts by a larger group of right-wing Conservatives to toughen up the law with their own amendments.
A further 18 Tory MPs abstained from the vote.
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PM to give press conference after Rwanda row
The plan will now head to the Lords for further scrutiny, and is expected to face additional criticism from peers on all sides of the chamber, with a Tory source saying the prime minister was “by no means out of the woods”.
One Conservative frontbench peer told Sky News the government would be “thoroughly beaten” over the Rwanda scheme, adding: “The bill will only be weakened [by the Lords] and that will just throw more grenades onto the green carpets [of the Commons].”
But a Number 10 spokesman said the passing of the bill by MPs “marks a major step in our plan to stop the boats”.
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Moment Rwanda plan clears Commons
This latest piece of legislation attempting to get the Rwanda scheme off the ground came as a response to the UK’s Supreme Court, who ruled the plan was “unlawful” late last year.
To address the court’s concerns, the bill designates Rwanda as a “safe country”, and it gives ministers the powers to disregard sections of the Human Rights Act to ensure deportation flights get off the ground.
But it does not go as far as allowing them to dismiss interventions from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) entirely – a demand of some on the right.
The government offered limited concessions to rebels over the course of the week in an attempt to keep them on side – including an increase in judges to handle appeals and changes to the civil service code.
But Mr Sunak also had to prevent a possible rebellion from more centrist Tories, who believe going any further would threaten the UK’s international legal obligations on human rights, as well as ensuring the Rwandan government remained content with the proposals.
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What do voters think of Rwanda plan?
While some of the prominent figures publicly arguing against the bill fell into line when the crunch vote came late last night – including two MPs who resigned their party posts in order to back rebel amendments – others were willing to vote against the government.
Ms Braverman, who was fired as home secretary in Mr Sunak’s last reshuffle, posted on X that the Rwanda bill would “not stop the boats” in its current form and “leaves us exposed to litigation and the Strasbourg court”.
She added: “I engaged with the government to fix it but no changes were made. I could not vote for yet another law destined to fail.”
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Starmer: Rwanda policy a ‘farce’
Home Office minister Chris Philp told Sky News the rebels had “sincerely held views on how the bill could be strengthened” and were “perfectly entitled to put their ideas forward and to vote for them as they did”.
But he pointed out that when it came to the “critical vote” to move the legislation on, the majority backed the government.
“This is a critical government policy and a critical government pledge,” he added. “The government has a plan, a plan on the economy, a plan on immigration.
“We are delivering that plan. We’re going to stick with that plan and it’s going to work.”
Mr Philp also denied the internal party row was taking up all the prime minister’s time, telling Kay Burley Mr Sunak “can walk and chew gum at the same time”.
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But Labour has called the Conservative Party “a shambles”, and remains strongly opposed to the Rwanda bill.
Shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds told Sky News: “This is a gimmick that means spending £400m. Nobody has gone to Rwanda. It won’t solve the [small boats] problem. You can’t solve the problem by gimmicks.
“And at the heart of this very serious problem is a conversation about whether you have these gimmicks that won’t do the job or whether you spend the money properly on things like cracking down on the criminal gangs, having a proper returns policy.
“You don’t have millions of pounds spent on people in hotels because you’re processing the system fairly [and] efficiently. That’s what it’s got to be. And anything else, quite frankly, is a gimmick.”
Opinion by: James Strudwick, executive director, Starknet Foundation
The outlook surrounding the use of new technologies has shifted in Washington. Tesla CEO and presidential adviser Elon Musk’s proposition to incorporate blockchain technology into the US Treasury has placed blockchain and its use for state finances at the forefront of the global debate. According to Musk, much of this drive is rooted in the concern over the unsustainability of current government spending. With its immutable ledgers and transparent audit trails, blockchain is waiting in the wind, offering a potential solution to managing vast public finances.
Musk advocates for a unified information system that can track real-time payments, credentials and government resources, spurring a debate within the fintech community about the pros and cons of introducing such a tool at the government level. The idea is compelling, as the description on the blockchain tin effectively promises accountability, traceability and streamlined operations. The shift here, namely to a blockchain-powered government infrastructure, presents several challenges that may prove to be beyond what the new administration has expected thus far.
Blockchain as state appendage
A concern for stakeholders orbiting the blockchain world revolves around the sheer scale of government operations. Every day, the US government handles thousands of transactions across various departments. The feasibility of Musk’s vision is put into question simply as a result of its own complexity. The provable security that blockchain technology must offer while handling millions of daily transactions without buckling under the load to succeed at this scale is enormous.
A proposed solution by Musk is a hybrid model that uses “Validium” zero-knowledge rollups. The speed and efficiency of modern ZK-rollups, which can handle hundreds of millions of transactions daily, have the potential to make sure each citizen’s share of government transactions is intact and verifiable. The technology’s rapidly evolving nature, scaling to handle even higher transaction volumes in the coming years, indicates that this could be achievable.
Unfortunately, this in itself comes with its own hurdles, particularly when integrating public services, which tend to operate in silos.
The human question
The great irony here is that Musk’s declarations of government inefficiency as a reason for the ongoing shakeups could be one of the biggest reasons not to go ahead with the plan. The real obstacle here is not so much technological as it is deeply, irrevocably human. The transition from archaic legacy systems to the more modern infrastructure of blockchain requires not just software updates but an entire reprogramming of the workforce. Government employees embedded in bureaucracy are used to outdated systems, and retraining them will be no small task.
Recent: US housing dept mulls blockchain, stablecoin to pay and monitor grants: Report
Moreover, current government databases are a labyrinth of poorly documented, indecipherable data. Extracting and migrating this data to a blockchain infrastructure is itself a task that may require serious investment. For all its elegance, blockchain wasn’t built to contend with such inefficiency. Despite its potential for handling complex, distributed environments, the difficulties present in the system itself could make the transition more complicated than the hassle is worth.
Balancing transparency and confidentiality
Transparency of federal spending is also a factor worth highlighting. The innate strength of blockchain and its much-lauded appeal is its strength. It permits citizens to track how public funds are allocated and spent. Musk’s premise could foster a so-far unseen level of accountability, which makes transactions, every delegation of power and every resource distribution visible to the public in real-time.
The problem is that sensitive government data, classified information or personal identification could be dangerously exposed on a public blockchain. Musk’s response is to try to tether sensitive data to private channels in the blockchain and ensure that only individuals with the appropriate authorization or from specific departments can access confidential information. Theoretically, this addresses the security concern while allowing blockchain’s public verifiability.
Musk’s offer could lead to a more efficient, accountable system. The social drive behind this is the longstanding criticism of wasted spending and resource misallocation. There is also a possibility of strengthening democratic processes by holding public officials more accountable. A decentralized authority has the broader impact of empowering citizens through real-time access.
There is a forward-thinking aspect to the vision. It raises a profound question. Technology could address human governance challenges, but we run the risk of a fundamental shift in how we understand privacy and accountable authority. As we question the nature of governance, it warrants careful consideration of the role of blockchain and what it could ultimately mean for the future of society as a whole.
Opinion by: James Strudwick, executive director, Starknet Foundation.
This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.
Sir Keir Starmer has said the government has been preparing “for all eventualities” ahead of Donald Trump announcing global tariffs later on Wednesday.
The US president is set to announce details of fresh tariffs on imports into the US after he said all countries will be targeted in his bid to “rebalance” trade agreements.
Mr Trump is expected to announce 20% tariffs on most US imports on what he has called “Liberation Day”.
Politics latest: PM admits ‘pressures bearing down on businesses and working people’
Sir Keir told Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs): “We’ve been preparing for all eventualities ahead of the confirmation of US tariffs later today.
“Let me be clear with the House: a trade war is in nobody’s interest, and the country deserves, and we will take, a calm, pragmatic approach.
“That is why constructive talks are progressing to agree a wider economic prosperity deal with the US.”
He said the government is working with all industries and sectors in the UK that are likely to be impacted.
Sir Keir Starmer met Donald Trump at the White House in February. Pic: PA
The prime minister added his government “will rule nothing out” as he again hinted at retaliatory tariffs.
However, he said he believes the UK’s interests are “best served by calmly trying to secure a deal”.
On Monday, Sir Keir told Sky News political editor Beth Rigby US-UK trade talks are “well advanced” and “rapid progress” had been made.
However, he admitted it is likely “there will be tariffs” as negotiators had not managed to fend them off in time.
At PMQs, Sir Keir rejected jumping into a trade war with the US, saying: “That cannot be the first response of the United Kingdom.”
The impact of potential retaliatory tariffs from the EU on Northern Ireland was also raised, with DUP MP Gavin Robinson reminding the prime minister not to forget the unique trade situation in Northern Ireland.
He said while exports from Northern Ireland are UK exports, imports to the country could be hit by tariffs imposed by the EU as it shares a border with the European bloc.
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Trump tariffs latest – Uncertainty around world on ‘Liberation Day’
Starmer rejects ‘knee-jerk’ response to Trump tariffs
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PM holding fire on Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs
The Belfast East MP asked whether government trade teams are attempting to exempt Northern Ireland from any EU action.
Sir Keir reacted by saying what is needed is to be “calm and pragmatic”.
He added the business secretary had spoken to the Northern Ireland government on Wednesday morning, “because this is a serious issue and we need to work together to resolve the interests of everybody in Northern Ireland”.
Last week, Mr Trump said he was open to carving out deals with countries seeking to avoid US tariffs, but those agreements would be negotiated after 2 April.
He previously said he “may give a lot of countries breaks, but it’s reciprocal”, adding: “We might be even nicer than that.”
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More than 400 Sikh groups call on Starmer to launch ‘promised’ inquiry on Golden Temple massacre
More than 400 Gurdwaras and Sikh organisations are calling on Sir Keir Starmer to launch an inquiry he promised into potential British involvement in the Golden Temple Massacre.
The groups have signed a letter that was sent to the prime minister urging him to follow through on a commitment made in 2022.
The calls relate to questions around what part the UK and British special forces played in the 1984 killings, in which hundreds of Sikhs died after the Indian military entered the temple complex where separatists had sought refuge.
Politics latest: PM admits ‘pressures’ as bills rise
In 2014, the UK government accidentally revealed Margaret Thatcher was aware of the Indian state’s intention to raid the temple and in the months before the raid, a British SAS officer provided advice to the Indian government.
A subsequent investigation commissioned by David Cameron found that a single officer provided advice – and there was “no evidence of UK government involvement in the operation itself”.
However, this investigation was criticised as a cover-up due to its limited scope and quick timeframe.
In 2022, Sir Keir wrote to all Gurdwaras and Sikh organisations, saying: “A future Labour government will open an independent inquiry into Britain’s military role in the Indian army’s 1984 raid on the Golden Temple in Amritsar. It is important that we are open, transparent and above reproach in understanding any role the UK may have played in such events.
“This is something I know is important to our Sikh communities here and throughout the world.”
However, an announcement on the inquiry is yet to materialise.
In the letter sent to the prime minister by the Sikh Federation, seen by Sky News, Sir Keir is told: “If what is eventually proposed by a Labour government fails to deliver the ‘truth’ as promised by you this will have massive political ramifications for the Sikh community’s support for Labour in future elections for many generations.”
The federation says an inquiry “must” be announced by 31 May.
Read more:
Groups ‘disappointed’ by silence on massacre
Sikh Activists fear for their life
Sikh campaigners want Starmer to keep his word. Pic: PA
In a letter to Labour MPs, the Sikh Federation also called on them to put pressure on the government to start an inquiry.
The organisation also said it had heard “extremely worrying rumours” that the Foreign, Commonwealth And Development Office has been under pressure from the Indian government to “avoid or limit” an independent inquiry.
It added: “Civil servants are understood to be advising that a public inquiry is expensive and could damage relations with India.”
The UK is currently trying to negotiate a new trade agreement with India in the wake of Brexit. Attempts by the Conservative government failed due to a difference in position over visas.
There is a campaign among some in the Sikh community for an independent nation to be established – known as Khalistan – out of parts of the Punjab region in northern India.
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These efforts are strongly opposed by Narendra Modhi’s Hindu nationalist BJP movement.
The FCDO and Downing Street have been approached for comment.
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