London, Europe Brief News – The UK High Court is scheduled to rule on Monday on whether the British government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda is legal.
In April, the UK struck a deal with Kigali, aiming to send tens of thousands of migrants arriving at its shores to Rwanda. Anyone judged to have entered Britain illegally is eligible for deportation, with the exception of unaccompanied children.
However, no deportation has yet taken place. The first planned deportation flight was blocked in June by a last-minute injunction from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), and the strategy’s lawfulness was subsequently challenged by a judicial review at London’s High Court.
A victory for the government on Monday will not mean that flights can take off straight away because there may be a further appeal in the British courts.
The ECHR injunction imposed during the summer prevents any immediate deportations until the conclusion of legal action in the United Kingdom.
This came at a time when illegal crossings of the English Channel have reached record levels, and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has staked his political credibility on stopping the arrivals in small boats.
Four migrants, including a teenager, died attempting the crossing last week. In November 2021, 27 migrants perished when their small boat capsized trying to make the journey.
The UK and France have vowed to intensify a drive to stop the dangerous journeys, with only limited success.
