First Ever Removal: UK Deports Failed Asylum Seeker to Rwanda
The individual received £3,000 in taxpayer money to assist with relocation as part of the UK voluntary return scheme.
In a groundbreaking move, Britain has transferred a failed asylum seeker to a third country through a voluntary removal program for the first time in history.
The asylum seeker was flown to Rwanda on Monday, confirmed by the Home Office to The Epoch Times.
The UK voluntary return scheme extends the opportunity for illegal immigrants to return to their home country, with Rwanda recently included in the program.
Depending on the destination country, individuals may receive financial assistance of up to £3,000. According to The Sun, a man of African descent, not originally from Rwanda, was flown out of the UK after receiving approximately £3,000 from British taxpayers to aid in relocation.
He was a failed asylum seeker who accepted the voluntary offer a few weeks prior.
Pre-Election ‘Gimmicks’
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, whose party has committed to halting small boat crossings in the English Channel, views the Rwanda initiative as a deterrent to illegal immigration.
Fulfilling one of his key political promises is crucial for Mr. Sunak, particularly with the upcoming general election. Launching flights to Rwanda could potentially enhance the Conservatives’ prospects in the May local elections.
Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper criticized the deportation of the first failed asylum seeker to Rwanda as an “expensive pre-election stunt.”
In her statement, the opposition minister highlighted that UK taxpayers will cover the cost of half a billion pounds, including five years of board and lodging for the volunteers in Rwanda.
This funding should be allocated to bolstering border security, Ms. Cooper suggested, noting that the returns scheme has faced challenges under Conservative governance since 2010.
The Liberal Democrats’ home affairs spokesperson, Alistair Carmichael, expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of the Conservatives’ approach, describing the Rwanda scheme as a political maneuver with little substance.
As the government proceeds with implementing the Rwanda initiative, Home Secretary James Cleverly anticipates the first flights to take off in approximately nine to eleven weeks.
Since the start of the year, the Home Office has recorded 7,567 illegal immigrants crossing the English Channel on small boats, with 900 crossings in the past week alone.
Tragically, five individuals, including a child, lost their lives in one such crossing last week.
The most recent fatalities in the English Channel add to a grim tally of reported deaths at sea of individuals attempting to reach the UK. Border Force data reveals over 120,000 detected crossings since monitoring began in 2018.
The Home Office also noted that the top three nationalities of immigrants arriving on small boats this year are Vietnamese, Afghani, and Iranian.
Mr. Cleverly emphasized the government’s efforts to curb illegal small boat crossings, with Mr. Sunak underscoring the deterrent impact of the Rwanda scheme.
