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= Safety Of Rwanda (Asylum & Immigration) Bill 2023 =

Background
The Safety Of Rwanda (Asylum & Immigration) Bill was introduced to the House of Commons on the 7th of December 2023, by the Home Secretary James Cleverly. Its purpose is to enable the removal of asylum seekers to the Republic of Rwanda, as agreed under a new treaty with the Rwandan government. This is part of the UK government’s ‘Rwanda policy', to reduce illegal immigration to the UK via the channel and is part of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s 5 pledges.

Provisions
The bill was introduced in response to the decision by the UK Supreme Court that the previous treaty with the Rwandan government was unlawful. To address the court's ruling, the bill seeks to bypass the decision of the court that Rwanda was not a safe third country and that asylum seekers sent to Rwanda were at risk of being returned to a country where they were at risk of persecution. The bill, as introduced, states that :

1) Any people removed to Rwanda will not be removed from Rwanda to any country other than the UK.

2) That the claims processing system of Rwanda is “improved”.

3) That legal assistance is provided to individuals removed to assist them with the processing of their asylum claims or any appeals relating to such a claim.

The primary function of the Bill is to override the judgement of the Supreme Court. The Bill reads, "Every decision-maker must conclusively treat the Republic of Rwanda as a safe country”. The bill further states that “The provisions of this Act apply notwithstanding the relevant provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998”. The bill effectively overrules all relevant UK law and further prevents any challenge to the assertion that ‘Rwanda is a safe country’. Interim measures from the European Court of Human Rights are also to be overridden by this bill, as it states: “It is for a Minister of the Crown (and only a Minister of the Crown) to decide whether the United Kingdom will comply with the interim measure”.

Status
The bill will go to its second reading on the 12th of December 2023.

Response
In response to the Bill, Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick resigned, saying that the bill "does not go far enough". Former home secretary Suella Braverman also criticised the bill. Resistance to the bill during its second reading is anticipated, with Labour planning to vote against it and rumours of a potential Tory rebellion. The far right of the Tory party appears to oppose the bill, though no statement of how they will vote has emerged. The party's centre also appears to oppose the bill, though no statement has been released. It would take a rebellion of only 29 Conservative MPs to prevent the bill’s passage and should it fail, the leadership of Rishi Sunak may come into question.