Rwanda: UK-Rwanda Migration Plan - What Next After British Parliament Votes in Favour of New Treaty?

13 December 2023
The New Times (Kigali)
analysis By Hudson Kuteesa

On Tuesday, December 12, British legislators voted in favour of the recently inked migration treaty between their nation and Rwanda.

The agreement, formalised in Kigali on December 5 by the foreign ministers of both countries, aims to revive the Migration and Economic Development Partnership (MEDP), which was deemed unlawful by the UK Supreme Court in November.

While the parliamentary approval marks a crucial initial step, the treaty must undergo several more stages before implementation can commence. The subsequent phase involves the committee stage, during which Members of Parliament will meticulously examine the treaty's contents. This thorough scrutiny is anticipated to take place in 2024.

Upon successful navigation through the committee stage, the agreement will progress to the report stage, followed by a third reading in the House of Commons. Subsequently, it will proceed to the House of Lords. Should both houses reach a consensus, the agreement will receive Royal Assent, formalising its status as law.

The new treaty entails clauses that ensure that people relocated to Rwanda under the partnership are not at risk of being returned to a country where their life or freedom would be threatened. It enhances the functions of an independent monitoring committee to ensure compliance with its obligations, such as reception conditions, processing of asylum claims, and treatment and support for individuals, including up to five years after they have received a final determination of their status.

British people should decide who gets to come, not criminal gangs

During Tuesday's parliamentary session, the House of Commons voted 313-269 to approve the bill in principle.

''The British people should decide who gets to come to this country - not criminal gangs or foreign courts. That's what this Bill delivers. We will now work to make it law so that we can get flights going to Rwanda and stop the boats,'' British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak posted on X after the bill was passed.

The UK-Rwanda plan aims to relocate people who arrive in the UK in small boats, to Rwanda where they could claim asylum.

According to the United Nations, more than 2,500 migrants died or went missing in 2023 while trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea to get to Europe.

Read the original article on New Times.

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