Member

In Clause 37, the Government formally propose to repeal the safety of Rwanda Act, which underpinned our deterrent. I am grateful to my noble friend Lord Sharpe for stating his intention to oppose this clause standing part of the Bill. In pursuing this path, the Government are formally repealing a policy introduced by the previous Government, who sought to address the problem of illegal migration at source. Clause 37 does not merely repeal a piece of legislation; it repeals a strategy designed to make it clear that the United Kingdom would not be a soft touch for illegal migration and that those who paid criminal gangs to reach our shores would not be rewarded with indefinite leave to remain.