Rishi Sunak vows to do ‘whatever is necessary’ to stop small boats and says the policy will pay off following calls from ministers to rethink the UK’s ECHR membership
- Rishi Sunak has vowed to do ‘whatever is necessary’ to stop small boat crossings
Rishi Sunak has vowed to do ‘whatever is necessary’ to stop small boat crossings after several ministers called for a rethink of Britain’s European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) membership.
During his conference speech, the Prime Minister hailed the Government’s progress in reducing small boat Channel crossings by a fifth this year.
But he admitted they are ‘by no means where [they] want to be’, and said that only ‘once flights start going regularly to Rwanda, the boats will stop coming’.
Although the Government is ‘confident’ that their current approach aligns with their ‘international obligations’, Mr Sunak said, he will do whatever it takes to fulfil his priority to the British people.
Pressure has been mounting on Mr Sunak to ensure the UK leaves the human rights framework after the Strasbourg court’s rule 39 injunctions blocked the Government’s efforts to deport asylum-seekers to the East African nation.
Rishi Sunak (pictured) has vowed to do ‘whatever is necessary’ to stop small boat crossings after several ministers called for a rethink of Britain’s European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) membership
A view of small boats and engines used to cross the Channel by people thought to be migrants at a warehouse facility in Dover, Kent, on October 2
During party conference, Cabinet ministers Kemi Badenoch and Michael Gove urged Mr Sunak to rethink Britain’s membership of the ECHR, while Home Secretary Suella Braverman last week attacked the ECHR as unfit for purpose.
The Prime Minister said: ‘I never pretended that stopping the boats would be easy.
‘At the time I committed the Government to delivering that goal the consensus was simple – there was nothing we could do about it.
‘It is not impossible, and we are proving it.
‘Small boat crossings are, for the first time since the phenomenon began, down 20 per cent this year. All while entry into Europe is up.
‘We are by no means where we want to be – but don’t let anyone tell you we aren’t making progress. We are, and we will get there.
‘Our new law will ensure that if you come here illegally, you will be detained and swiftly removed.
‘I am confident that once flights start going regularly to Rwanda, the boats will stop coming.
‘Just look at how our returns agreement with Albania has seen the numbers coming from there fall by 90 per cent.
During his conference speech, the Prime Minister hailed the Government’s progress in reducing small boat Channel crossings by a fifth this year
During party conference, Cabinet ministers Kemi Badenoch (pictured) and Michael Gove urged Mr Sunak to rethink Britain’s membership of the ECHR, while Home Secretary Suella Braverman last week attacked the ECHR as unfit for purpose
‘I am confident that our approach complies with our international obligations.
‘But know this, I will do whatever is necessary to stop the boats.’
By contrast, he added, Labour’s plans to accept a quota of migrants from the EU under a returns agreement shows they ‘just don’t get it’.
On Sunday Mrs Badenoch became the second Cabinet minister to back leaving the ECHR, suggesting the option was ‘definitely something that needs to be on the table’.
‘It’s certainly not racist to talk about reviewing conventions we joined 100 years ago,’ she said. ‘I think that’s a ridiculous argument.’
Asked this week whether he agreed with Mrs Badenoch, Mr Gove said the Prime Minister should ‘keep every option open’ on the matter – though Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said they could achieve their migration goals within the agreement.
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