Rwanda bill sent back to MPs after peers inflicts new defeats on government

Published

2 months ago

March 20, 2024

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A government bill centred on deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda has been sent back to MPs after peers rejected it.

The Safety of Rwanda Bill had been debated in the House of Lords after their previous changes were dismissed by the Commons earlier this week.

In the upper chamber, the government lost seven votes by margins of around 50. The last time peers voted on amendments, the government lost by around 100 votes.

This means that a new vote will need to be scheduled in the Commons for MPs to consider the changes.

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While Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said he wants flights to get off the ground in the spring, it is unclear if the two parliamentary houses will be able to reach a consensus before they go on recess next week.

The defeats for the government included:

• An amendment to make sure the legislation has “due regard” for international law, by 271 to 228;

• An amendment that states it is only safe in Rwanda while the provision in the treaty with the UK is in place, by 285 to 230;

• An amendment to check whether Rwanda complies with its treaty obligations, by 276 to 226;

• An amendment allowing individual appeals based on safety in Rwanda, by 263 to 233;

• An amendment requiring age assessments for those being deported to be carried out by the local authority, by 249 to 219;

• An amendment preventing those who say they are victims of modern slavery from being deported, by 251 to 214;

• An amendment to prevent the deportation of those who have served with or for the UK’s armed forces, by 248 to 209.

Labour’s Lord Vernon Coaker was among those who spoke against the government’s proposals.

He criticised the Commons for rejecting all the Lords’ initial amendments “carte blanche”.

Lord Coaker also bemoaned the continuing parliamentary ping pong which is set to continue after the Easter Christmas recess, saying it was the “government’s own management of its own timetable”.

Lord Alf Dubs, who arrived in Britain in 1939 on the Kindertransport – which organised the rescue of children from the Nazis – told the Lords it would be “an appalling dereliction of our responsibilities to vulnerable young people” if children who had been wrongly assessed as adults were sent to Rwanda.

On the other side of the debate, government and Conservative peers repeated the previous arguments, including that Rwanda was being judged as “not safe” because it’s “black”.

Lord Peter Lilley said: “I think we’re making a bit too much of the lack of provisions and safeguards now about one black country, when we had no concerns about a list of white countries.”

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And Lord Keith Stewart – who is a government law officer – said: “Accountability is at the heart of democracy. That is why the government are fully entitled to bring forward the bill and why much of the criticism directed at them for doing so is fundamentally misconceived.”

Earlier in the day, Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer clashed over the policy – with the Labour leader branding it a “gimmick”, and claiming that the prime minister doesn’t believe in it.

Politics

SNP leadership race: John Swinney new party leader and is now set to become Scottish first minister

Published

1 hour ago

May 6, 2024

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SNP leadership race: John Swinney new party leader and is now set to become Scottish first minister

John Swinney has won the SNP leadership contest and is set to be named as Scotland’s new first minister, replacing Humza Yousaf.

Mr Swinney could become Scotland’s seventh first minister as early as Tuesday.

The SNP leadership nominations closed at 12pm on Monday, with the party confirming Mr Swinney was the sole nominee.

He is expected to give a speech later in the day.

Posting on X, he said: “I am deeply honoured to have been elected as leader of the SNP. I will give all that I have to serve my party and my country.”

The former deputy first minister, who served under close ally Nicola Sturgeon, emerged as a frontrunner following Mr Yousaf’s resignation last week.

Former finance secretary Kate Forbes had been tipped to join him, but later announced she would not stand and instead threw her support behind Mr Swinney.

Mr Swinney has said he would want Ms Forbes to “play a significant part” in his government if elected as first minister.

Potential challenger Graeme McCormick also withdrew his bid at the 11th hour.

The veteran SNP activist claimed he had secured the 100 nominations from 20 branches needed to enter the contest but backed out of the campaign on Sunday evening after a “lengthy and fruitful conversation” with Mr Swinney.

The SNP has appeared keen to avoid an explosive leadership contest similar to the one that followed Ms Sturgeon’s resignation.

Last year’s race, involving Mr Yousaf, Ms Forbes and now Alba Party MSP Ash Regan, featured rows over religious beliefs, arguments about the recollection of past events, and widespread criticism of secrecy surrounding the vote.

It also led to the resignation of Ms Sturgeon’s husband Peter Murrell as SNP chief executive.

Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross congratulated Mr Swinney on becoming SNP leader for a second time, but urged him to abandon his “relentless push for independence”.

Mr Ross added: “It’s difficult to see how he can be the fresh start Scotland needs when he’s the ultimate continuity candidate.”

Patrick Harvie, Scottish Greens co-leader, said Scotland “needs a period of stable government”.

He added: “Mr Swinney knows that if he is to have our support then it must be on the basis of progressive policies that help us to tackle the climate crisis and build a fairer and more equal future.”

Mr Harvie said his party remains “utterly committed” to the policies delivered as a result of the Bute House Agreement and will “oppose any move away from them or steps to dilute them”.

He added: “We are committed to delivering on our vision of a fairer, greener and more equal Scotland, and are open to talks with John Swinney and his team about how we can work together to make that happen.”