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Rishi Sunak faces a mounting rebellion over his flagship Rwanda plan, with Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson poised to back rebel amendments to the Bill.
The prime minister has also apparently been privately warned by cabinet minister Kemi Badenoch that the Bill does not go far enough. Mr Anderson has told government whips he will support the rebel amendments, according to reports.
Mr Sunak staved off a threatened revolt last month over the Rwanda policy, which is designed to allow the government to deport asylum seekers to the east African nation, a key plank of the PM’s “stop the boats” pledge.
Lee Anderson could back amendments to Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda Bill (Jacob King/PA)
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Lee Anderson could back amendments to Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda Bill (Jacob King/PA)
(PA Wire)
It was deemed unlawful by the Supreme Court in November, leading the PM and home secretary James Cleverly to table a plan B.
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The bill, which will be debated and voted on this Tuesday and Wednesday, deems Rwanda a “safe” country in British law, and was drawn up alongside a new treaty with Kigali.
But Mr Anderson has told Tory whips he will vote for a series of rebel amendments to the Bill, along with up to 60 fellow right-wing Conservative MPs, it has emerged.
It would mean Mr Anderson voting against the government, despite being the deputy chairman of the Conservative Party.
One MP familiar with Mr Anderson’s thinking told The Times he told whips the government must support the amendments or lose him as deputy chairman.
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Four key amendments to the Bill, put forward by right-wing Tories including former immigration minister Robert Jenrick, are designed to stop asylum seekers appealing their deportation on human rights grounds.
Mr Sunak is not expected to support any of the amendments and a source close to the PM has said there is “limited room for manoeuvre” in changing the Bill.
Meanwhile it was reported that business secretary Ms Badenoch urged the PM to toughen up the Rwanda Bill by blocking individual appeals by migrants.
She is said to have warned Mr Sunak’s chief of staff Liam Booth-Smith at a meeting in Downing Street of the political consequences of the Rwanda Bill failing.
A source told The Times: “Kemi was aware that the prime minister faced a serious rebellion and he had to try and accommodate them, so she went in to see Liam. She was trying to avoid the rebel MPs turning against the government.”
Suella Braverman has said she will vote against the Government’s Rwanda Bill next week if there are ‘no improvements’ (Justin Tallis/PA)
(PA Wire)
Mr Sunak insisted he is "talking to all my colleagues" when asked about the prospect of Mr Anderson and other senior figures rebelling to vote for amendments to the Safety of Rwanda Bill.
Asked during a visit to Essex whether Tory rebels would be disciplined if they vote for amendments designed to toughen the migration legislation this week, Mr Sunak said: "I know everyone is frustrated - I'm frustrated about the situation - and they want to see an end to the legal merry-go-round.
"I'm confident that the Bill we have got is the toughest that anyone has ever seen and it will resolve this issue once and for all."
The PM added that he was "determined to get this new legislation onto the statute book so we can get our Rwanda scheme up and running".
It came as the i revealed that six people from Rwanda have been granted asylum in Britain since the government signed its deportation deal with the country in 2022.
It means more asylum seekers have arrived in Britain from Rwanda than vice versa since the agreement was signed, which stands at zero, and calls into question Mr Sunak’s plans to legally rule Rwanda a “safe” country.
Other right-wing rebels who have threatened to vote against the Bill include former home secretary Suella Braverman, who said it is “better to defeat this bill… and start again with a new bill that will work”.
She told GB News: “We may all feel a temporary sense of achievement by passing a bill but in a few months time when we see that plane grounded on the tarmac, when we’re failing to remove people to Rwanda, when we are clogged up in the courts - it will be very, very disappointing and people will ask us rightly, what did you do to try and avoid that catastrophe?
“That’s what I’m trying to do now. I’m trying to avoid a catastrophe of failing to deliver on this pledge.”
Meanwhile Miriam Cates, a member of the right-wing New Conservatives group, said the Bill “in its current form won’t stop the boats”. “I will be voting for amendments to strengthen the Bill,” Ms Cates said on Twitter.
More about Lee Anderson Kemi Badenoch Rwanda Rishi Sunak Prime Minister asylum seekers Government
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1/ 3Top Tories round on Rishi Sunak over Rwanda bill
Top Tories round on Rishi Sunak over Rwanda bill
Lee Anderson could back amendments to Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda Bill (Jacob King/PA)
PA Wire
Top Tories round on Rishi Sunak over Rwanda bill
Suella Braverman has said she will vote against the Government’s Rwanda Bill next week if there are ‘no improvements’ (Justin Tallis/PA)
PA Wire
Top Tories round on Rishi Sunak over Rwanda bill
Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will address Parliament later to discuss last weeks Houthi strikes
AFP via Getty Images
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