Rwandan criminals could come to the UK as part of Rishi's migrant deal, James Cleverly admits

13 December 2023, 08:55 | Updated: 13 December 2023, 09:10

By Kieran Kelly

@kellyjourno

Rwandan criminals could come to the UK as part of a deal to send illegal migrants to the African nation, the Home Secretary has admitted to LBC.

Speaking after the Govt survived a crunch vote on the Safety of Rwanda Bill, James Cleverly told LBC's Nick Ferrari at Breakfast that the law does mean Rwandan criminals could be sent back the UK if the African nation's government deems it necessary.

Mr Cleverly said it relates to a clause that ensures Rwanda is not able to send illegal migrants on to another nation once they have arrived from the UK "for any reason".

"This will only be the case in a tiny number [of cases] - if at all," Mr Cleverly said.

"If for whatever reason Rwanda had to deport someone, they could only send them back to us," he continued.

Asked by Nick if that means criminals could be sent back to the UK, Mr Cleverly said this was "theoretically" possible, though said the chances of this happening were "vanishingly small".

Rwanda flights will 'start in Spring' says Home Secretary

LBC previously reported that the Rwandan government said it was prepared to take "thousands" of illegal migrants throughout the duration of its partnership with the UK.

While Rwanda has insisted it will take thousands of migrants from the UK, any asylum seeker that is convicted of a crime in the African nation - and is sentenced to five or more years - will have their right to stay revoked following their time in prison.

Read More: James Cleverly says he can't remember calling Rwanda deportation policy 'batshit'

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The same rules will apply to anyone who is considered to be a national security threat by the Rwandan government.

The Home Office has said any only a small number of asylum seekers are likely to be sent back to the UK and insisted they could still be returned to their point of origin if it is considered to be a safe country.

As for when the policy is expected to get up and running, Mr Cleverly said he hopes flights to Rwanda will be off the ground by the Spring, but was unable to provide an exact date.