Paul Seddon & Sam Francispolitical reporter
PA mediaRishi Sunak is facing a serious revolt from Conservative MPs over a bill that would revive plans to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda.
More than 30 right-wing backbenchers in the party are backing plans to change the bill next week to make it harder for people to apply for deportation.
The amendments highlight the extent of the Conservative Party’s divisions over the prime minister’s policy priorities.
Ministers claim the bill allows for only a “very small number” of appeals.
The amendments are backed by former cabinet ministers including former Conservative Party leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith and former home secretary Suella Braverman.
Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick, the leader of the opposition who resigned last month over the bill, said the current bill would not prevent a “merry-go-round” of individual appeals.
Rwanda policy dominated the prime minister’s questions, with Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer claiming he had been “held hostage by his own party”.
he added: weekend report Mr Sunak’s questionable policies during his time as prime minister suggest he was “caught red-handed”.
“He knows Rwanda’s plan won’t work, but he’s too scared of his own MPs to be honest,” he added.
In response, the Prime Minister said the government would deliver on its promise to stop migrants crossing the Channel in small boats.
Mr Sunak said Labor had not put forward “a single practical idea” to reduce illegal immigration and that “we can never be trusted to stop ships”.
The government introduced the bill last month after a plan to send asylum seekers to the East African country was ruled illegal by the Supreme Court.
The bill aims to declare Rwanda a safe country to send refugees under UK law, thereby preventing flights from being grounded on legal grounds.
Ministers may ignore an emergency order from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to suspend flights to Rwanda while separate cases are heard.
But the opposition argues that it is still permissible for policies to be derailed by a wave of individual complaints, and they want to tighten the conditions under which this is allowed.
They also want to make it the default position for ministers to ignore injunctions from the ECHR blocking flights.
“Win the argument”
The amendment is destined to fail in a vote next Tuesday as it struggles to muster the support from Labor MPs needed to overturn the government’s majority.
However, the opposition could jeopardize the government’s bill if it is rejected at a later stage without being amended.
The group of 29 MPs would be large enough to overturn Mr Sunak’s 56-seat majority if he voted for Labor, which opposes the Rwanda policy.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Jenrick did not rule out rejecting the bill in its entirety if the proposed changes were unsuccessful.
But he said he was “not thinking beyond that,” adding that the rebels wanted to “win the argument.”
One Nation pressure
Ministers may make concessions to the rebels in an attempt to win them over, but that is thought to be unlikely until the bill reaches its final stages in parliament.
The government also faces pressure from members of the Conservative Party’s more liberal One Nation faction, who argue that the bill cannot be further strengthened without breaking international law.
Mr Jenrick said the current bill was “guaranteed to fail” as it would not provide a “sustainable deterrent” for people crossing the Channel to apply for asylum.
He added that appeals for deportation should only be granted in limited cases, such as pregnant women or those unable to fly.
“If we don’t fix this bill, the country will be exposed to more illegal immigration, farcical immigrant hotels, and billions more in wasted taxpayer dollars in the coming years,” he added. Ta.
Downing Street previously called the bill “the toughest legislation ever brought before Parliament” and said it would “make clear that this Parliament, not foreign courts, is sovereign”.
