UK publishes emergency bill to allow deportation plan to Rwanda

The UK government has published emergency legislation aimed at allowing a controversial deportation scheme to Rwanda to move forward.

The “Safety of Rwanda Bill” is designed to overcome a November 15 ruling by the UK Supreme Court that found the government’s proposed scheme to send thousands of asylum seekers and migrants to the East African nation to be unlawful.

The draft bill, which deems Rwanda a safe country and is set to be rushed through the House of Commons, bypasses some sections of the Human Rights Act (HRA) and “any other provision or rule of domestic law, and any interpretation of international law by the court or tribunal”.

The proposed legislation would also give courts the ability to ignore any injunction from the European Court of Human Rights to block flights.

The publication of the law on Wednesday comes a day after British Home Secretary James Cleverly signed a new treaty during a visit to Rwanda’s capital, Kigali, to include commitments regarding the treatment of asylum seekers and other migrants sent there.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the proposed law would mean the plan would no longer be bogged down in the courts.

“Our new landmark emergency legislation will control our borders, deter people taking perilous journeys across the channel [and] end the continuous legal challenges filling our courts,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

“It is parliament that should decide who comes to this country, not criminal gangs.”