A Tory MP has slapped down Labour’s "sham" migration policy as “feeble attempt” to show they are tackling the illegal arrivals into Britain.

       Tim Loughton, a member of the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, accused the Opposition party of lacking a “credible, working plan” of their own.

       He said: “If they’re going to criticise what the Government is doing because of a lack of transparency, their potential schemes which have been denied and then not denied, are completely and utterly opaque.

       “This is a sham. It is a shambles. It is a Labour gimmick, a con. It is a feeble attempt to show that they are somehow tackling illegal migration by talking about it, by attacking the government, voting against every measure to bring forward practical measures whilst having no credible working plans of their own. They need to be called out for it.”

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       Labour’s attitude towards offshoring came under scrutiny from both the Conservatives and the SNP.

       Alison Thewliss, the SNP home affairs spokeswoman, said: “The shadow home secretary (Yvette Cooper) didn’t rule out offshoring people should they be in Government. So, I want to ask the Labour Party is it the cost or the principle of offshoring that they object to?”

       She pointed to documents released by the National Archives over Christmas which showed the Blair government considered a “nuclear option” for unauthorised migration which would see refugees housed on the Isle of Mull or in the Falklands, or deported to “safe havens” in Turkey or Kenya.

       She added: “20 years on how chillingly reminiscent of the current Conservative government.”

       Immigration minister Tom Pursglove confirmed in the Commons that ￡240million has been spent on the Rwanda scheme so far and said further costs would be reported in the “perfectly normal” way in the yearly accounts.

       MPs will further consider the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill next week, the Commons Leader has said.

       Penny Mordaunt told the Commons that the Bill’s committee stage will take place on January 16 and 17.

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