MPs back Rwanda bill in boost to Rishi Sunak despite rebellion by rightwing MPs – as it happened | Politics
- Politics
- December 13, 2023
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Rwanda bill passed by 313 votes to 269, a majority of 44
The government has won by 313 votes to 269 – a majority of 44.
Key events
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A summary of today’s developments
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How at least 25 Conservative MPs abstained on Rwanda bill as act of rebellion
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Rwanda bill passed by 313 votes to 269, a majority of 44
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MPs start voting on Rwanda bill’s second reading
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ERG chair Mark Francois says rightwing Tory groups set to abstain, but that they expect PM to agree to toughen bill later
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Illegal migration minister Michael Tomlinson tells MPs he expects hundreds of people to be deported to Rwanda in 2024
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Only 10% of people think government has done good job managing immigration, poll suggests
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NAO says it will publish report on costs of Rwanda scheme in 2024
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No 10 says government not ruling out changing elements of Rwanda bill relating to domestic, but not international, law
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Rwanda bill could make Northern Ireland ‘magnet’ for asylum seekers, DUP claims
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Jenrick calls Rwanda bill ‘sophistry’ because it will not stop European court of human rights blocking deportation flights
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Cooper says Cleverly has now confirmed Rwanda scheme will cost £400m by 2026
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Cleverly sidesteps question about whether minister could lawfully ignore human rights court injunction under bill
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Cleverly confirms that UK planning to give Rwanda a further £50m in 2026
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Cleverly says bill ‘pushing at edge of envelope’ but still ‘within framework of international law’
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James Cleverly claims government ‘is stopping the boats’ as he opens debate on Rwanda bill
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No 10 insists Rwanda bill is ‘tough’ – but says it is open to ‘constructive comments’ from MPs
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Former chief whip Nick Brown resigns from Labour in protest at ‘flawed’ handling of complaint against him
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Sunak must call general election if he loses Rwanda bill vote, says Starmer
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Asylum seeker on Bibby Stockholm barge dies
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Starmer says Labour would offer practical solutions to problems, not ‘performance art’ gimmicks like Rwanda plan
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Rwanda bill ‘inconsistent’ with ECHR, says parliament’s joint committee on human rights
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Rwanda bill – reading list
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Stopping all deportation appeals ‘not the British thing to do’, says minister
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Potential Tory rebels silent as they leave No 10 as Sunak fights to win support for Rwanda bill
A summary of today’s developments
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MPs backed the contentious Rwanda bill despite a rebellion by rightwing MPs. The government won the first division with 337 votes. On the second division it had 313 votes. At least 25 Tory MPs definitely abstained on the Rwanda bill as an act of rebellion.
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Prior to the vote, Illegal Migration minister Michael Tomlinson told MPs he expects hundreds of people to be deported to Rwanda in 2024.
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Only 10% of voters think the government has done a good job managing immigration, new polling from Ipsos suggests. About 79% of people think the government has done a bad job.
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Newsportual Audit Office has announced that it will publish a report on the costs of the Rwanda scheme next year.
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Nick Brown, a former chief whip, has announced he is standing down as an MP at the next election – and resigning his Labour party membership in protest at the way an allegation against him is being investigated. The MP for Newcastle upon Tyne East has had the whip suspended for more than a year after a complaint was lodged against him under the party’s independent complaints procedure. Brown said the complaint was made by a political rival and related to something alleged to have happened more than 25 years ago. He also said the accusations were “entirely false”.
Wednesday’s Guardian.
The front of the Daily Mail.
Wednesday’s i.
In response to this evening’s House of Commons vote on the Government’s Rwanda bill, Sacha Deshmukh, Amnesty International UK’s chief executive, said: “Stripping people of their rights and shipping them off to Rwanda when they’re seeking asylum in the UK is a clear dereliction of this country’s responsibilities toward some of the world’s most desperate people. It is an attack on the basic principle that human rights are universal.
“People who’ve fled persecution and war in countries like Afghanistan, Iran, Syria and Ethiopia are entitled to seek a place of safety, and they deserve far better than this.
“This bill should be dropped in its entirety along with this Government’s policy to avoid properly processing people’s asylum claims in the UK.”
Wednesday’s Metro.
Here are some of Wednesday’s front pages starting with the FT.
Labour MP Peter Kyle has outlined the reasons for him voting against the Bill.
The SNP’s home affairs spokesperson, Alison Thewliss MP said: “This cruel Westminster Bill, which ignores the Supreme Court ruling and breaches international law, was not passed in Scotland’s name.
“It in no way reflects Scotland’s values of compassion, humanity and upholding international law. Nor does it take into account that migration benefits Scotland’s economy and our public services.
“That is why SNP MPs voted against it and tabled an amendment to try to stop the Bill in its tracks.”
Following the decision by the House of Commons to allow the Rwanda Bill to progress, Green Party peer Natalie Bennett said if it reaches the House of Lords, it will be its “constitutional duty to safeguard the rule of law”, knowing that it can definitively stop the Bill.
Bennett, said: “The Lords have a duty to protect the rule of law from a government that is showing a typically Hard Right disregard for the rule of law.
“The Lords have the power to stop this legislation and must not hide behind the mask of being ‘an unelected House’ in failing to do so.”
“The Rwanda Bill excludes the courts from their proper constitutional function of upholding Parliament’s laws. If the courts are prevented from doing their job, Ministers could ignore the laws made by parliament, or apply them incorrectly.
“The government is seeking to put Ministers above the law. We need a strong second chamber acting as a watchdog of the rule of law.”
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