Peer defends House of Lords' objections to Rwanda
Nigel Farage called for all peers to be "sacked" after Rishi Sunak's Rwanda plan suffered its first defeat in the Lords last night.
The unelected chamber backed an unprecedented move seeking to delay a new treaty with the east African nation.
Reacting to the blow, former Ukip leader Mr Farage said: "We must sack all current members of the House of Lords. It is beyond parody."
The legally binding treaty with Kigali is aimed at addressing the Supreme Court's concerns that asylum seekers deported to Rwanda could then be transferred to other countries.
But peers supported a call by the Lords International Agreements Committee (IAC) that Parliament should not ratify the pact until ministers can show Rwanda is safe.
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The Lords voted by 214 votes to 171, majority 43, to delay the treaty with Kigali.
The treaty underpins the Government's Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill which compels judges to regard the African country as safe.
The initial blow by peers suggests the Bill, due to have its second reading in the Lords on January 31, will have a rough ride.
Labour former attorney general Lord Goldsmith, who chairs the IAC, said: "In total our report identifies at least 10 sets of issues where on the basis of the Government's evidence significant additional legal and practical steps are needed in order to implement the protections the treaty is designed to provide. The difficulty is that the Government has already presented a Bill to Parliament asking it to make a judgment that Rwanda is safe now."
Lord Goldsmith added: "We are not saying the treaty should never be ratified but we are saying that Parliament should have the opportunity to scrutinise the treaty and its implementing measures in full before it makes a judgment about whether Rwanda is safe."
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But Conservative former Cabinet minister Lord Howell of Guildford said: "What does safe mean? It is an entirely subjective concept and always will be.
"In our own judicial system, is that safe? I don't know. I am not sure all our postmasters would agree about the safety of our own judicial system."
The treaty and Bill are aimed at getting the stalled plan to send Channel migrants on a one-way ticket to Rwanda off the ground.
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