With this it will be convenient to discuss the following:
Amendment 12, page 3, line 22, after “disapplied” insert
“, in relation to both of those Acts in relation to the removal of a person to Rwanda”.
This amendment is intended to ensure that the relevant provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998 are fully disapplied for both this Bill and for the Illegal Migration Act 2023 in relation to removals to Rwanda – including by ruling out the use of sections 4 and 10 of the HRA.
Amendment 13, page 3, line 25, after “legislation),” insert—
“(ba) sections 4 (declaration of incompatibility) and 10 (power to take remedial action),”
This amendment is intended to ensure that the relevant provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998 are fully disapplied for both this Bill and for the Illegal Migration Act 2023 in relation to removals to Rwanda – including by ruling out the use of sections 4 and 10 of the HRA.
Amendment 14, page 3, line 27, leave out from “apply” to end of line 29 and insert
“in relation into provision made by or by virtue of this Act, the Illegal Migration Act 2023 and the Immigration Acts in relation to the removal of a person to Rwanda”.
This amendment is intended to ensure that the relevant provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998 are fully disapplied for both this Bill and for the Illegal Migration Act 2023 in relation to removals to Rwanda – including by ruling out the use of sections 4 and 10 of the HRA.
Amendment 15, page 3, line 30, at end insert
“, the Illegal Migration Act 2023 or the Immigration Acts”.
This amendment is intended to ensure that the relevant provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998 are fully disapplied for both this Bill and for the Illegal Migration Act 2023 in relation to removals to Rwanda – including by ruling out the use of sections 4 and 10 of the HRA.
Amendment 16, page 3, line 30, at end insert—
“(4A) Sections 4 and 10 do not apply in relation to provision made by or by virtue of this Act, the Illegal Migration Act 2023, or the Immigration Acts.”.
This amendment is intended to ensure that the relevant provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998 are fully disapplied for both this Bill and for the Illegal Migration Act 2023 in relation to removals to Rwanda – including by ruling out the use of sections 4 and 10 of the HRA.
Amendment 17, page 3, line 32, leave out paragraphs (a) to (c) and insert
“provision made in relation to the removal or proposed removal to Rwanda by or by virtue of this Act or the Illegal Migration Act 2023.”.
This amendment is intended to ensure that the relevant provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998 are fully disapplied for both this Bill and for the Illegal Migration Act 2023 in relation to removals to Rwanda – including by ruling out the use of sections 4 and 10 of the HRA.
Amendment 18, page 4, line 6, at end insert—
“(5A) This section applies only in relation to the removal or proposed removal of a person to Rwanda under this Act or the Illegal Migration Act 2023.”.
This and other amendments to Clause 3 are intended to ensure that the relevant provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998 are fully disapplied for both this Bill and for the Illegal Migration Act 2023 in relation to removals to Rwanda – including by ruling out the use of sections 4 and 10 of the HRA. The Immigration Acts are listed in section 61(4) of the UK Borders Act 2007, as amended.
Clause 3 stand part.
Amendment 7, in clause 5, page 5, line 12, leave out subsection (2).
This amendment would omit the provision that only a Minister of the Crown can decide whether the United Kingdom will comply with interim measures of the European Court of Human Rights.
Amendment 23, page 5, line 13, leave out subsection (2) and insert—
“(2A) The interim measure is not binding on the United Kingdom, and will have no effect on any provision made by or by virtue of this Act or the Illegal Migration Act 2023, and shall not prevent or delay the removal of a person to Rwanda under this Act or the Illegal Migration Act 2023.”.
This ensures that the default position is that Rule 39 indications are not treated as binding on the United Kingdom and will not prevent removals to Rwanda, but to provide an optional discretion to Ministers.
Amendment 8, page 5, line 15, leave out subsection (3).
This amendment would remove the requirement that a court or tribunal must not have regard to the interim measure when considering any application or appeal which relates to a decision to remove the person to the Republic of Rwanda.
Amendment 51, page 5, line 15, leave out “not”.
This amendment would require court or tribunal to have regard to an interim measure of the European Court of Human Rights.
Amendment 24, page 5, line 19, leave out subsection (4) and insert—
“(4A) A Minister of the Crown, acting in person, may (but need not) determine that the duty to remove in section 2(1) of the Illegal Migration Act 2023 is not to apply in relation to a person to whom this section applies.”.
This amendment is linked to Amendment 23.
Amendment 52, page 5, line 22, leave out paragraph (b).
This amendment removes the definition in relation to Clause 5 of “Minister of the Crown” as a Minister of the Crown acting in person.
Amendment 38, page 5, line 23, after “person” insert
“in consultation with the Attorney General.”.
Explanatory note: This amendment ensures a Minister of the Crown making a decision on compliance with an interim injunction consults with the Attorney General.
Amendment 9, page 5, line 23, at end insert—
“(5) The Government must, within three months of this Act receiving Royal Assent, lay before Parliament a copy of a report setting out how this clause is compatible with Section 7A of the European Withdrawal Act and the UK’s obligations to citizens under the Good Friday Agreement.
(6) Within three sitting days of a report being laid under subsection (5) the Government must move in each House an amendable motion that that House has considered and approved the report which has been laid.
(7) Subsections (2) and (3) do not come into force until such as time as both Houses have passed motions under subsection (6) approving reports laid under subsection (5).”.
Amendment 25, page 5, line 23, at the end insert—
“(5) Section 55 of the Illegal Migration Act 2023 is amended as follows.
(6) In subsection (6) —
(a) omit “Where a Minister of the Crown does not make a determination under subsection (2)”, and
(b) after “applies” insert “in relation to the removal or proposed removal of a person to Rwanda”.
(7) For subsection (9) substitute —
“(9A) Where a Minister of the Crown has not made a determination under subsection (2) in relation to the removal or proposed removal of a person to Rwanda, section 4(2) of the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Act 2024 applies.”
(8) After subsection (10) insert—
“(11) Section 8(18) applies to any decisions made in connection with this section or section 5 of the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Act 2024.””.
This amendment ensures that the default position is that Rule 39 indications are not treated as binding on the United Kingdom and will not prevent removals to Rwanda, but to provide an optional discretion to Ministers.
Clauses 5 and 6 stand part.
Amendment 58, in clause 7, page 6, leave out line 18 and insert—
““safe country”—
(a) means a country to which persons may be removed from the United Kingdom in compliance with all of the United Kingdom’s obligations under international law, and
(b) includes, in particular, a country—
(i) from which a person removed to that country will not be removed or sent to another country in contravention of any international law, and
(ii) in which any person who is seeking asylum or who has had an asylum determination will both have their claim determined and be treated in accordance with that country’s obligation under international law.”.
This amendment is consequential on the removal of Clause 1 and restores to the Bill a different clarification of the meaning of “safe country” for the purposes of the Bill.
Clause 7 stand part.
Amendment 4, in clause 8, page 6, line 23, leave out “Scotland”.
The intention of this amendment is to prevent the Bill affecting the law in Scotland.
Amendment 5, page 6, line 25, after “within” insert “the rest of”.
The intention of this amendment is to ensure that any amendment made by any Act resulting from this Bill would affect only the rest of the UK, and not Scotland (see Amendment 4).
Amendment 32, page 6, line 25, leave out “the United Kingdom” and insert
“England and Wales and Northern Ireland.”.
This amendment is linked to Amendment 4 and is intended to remove the application of this Bill to Scotland.
Clause 8 stand part.
Amendment 53, in clause 9, page 6, line 38, leave out from “Act” to end of line 39 and insert
“shall only come into force only when each House of Parliament has come to Resolution on the following motion tabled by a Minister of the Crown: That the Agreement, done at Kigali on 5 December 2023, between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Government of the Republic of Rwanda for the Provision of an Asylum Partnership Agreement to Strengthen Shared International Commitments on the Protection of Refugees and Migrants (CP 994), a copy of which was laid before Parliament on 6 December 2023, should not be ratified.”.
This amendment aims to remove the treaty section from the bill and ensure there’s a separate debate on the matter.
Amendment 59, page 6, line 38, leave out from “force” to end of line 39 and insert
“on the day after the Secretary of State has laid before Parliament a statement that the Monitoring Committee under Article 15 of the Rwanda Treaty has been fully established (and see section (suspension of Act if Monitoring Committee not in operation))”.
This amendment makes commencement of the Act contingent on the establishment of the Monitoring Committee under Article 15 of the Rwanda Treaty.
Amendment 33, page 6, line 39, after “force” insert
“in England and Wales and in Northern Ireland”.
This is a paving amendment for Amendment 34.
Amendment 36, page 6, line 39, after “force” insert
“, or the day on which a full economic impact assessment for the bill is published including any financial memorandum signed between Rwanda and the UK relating to the Rwanda Treaty, whichever is later”.
This amendment requires the publication of a full impact assessment on the costs involved in removals to Rwanda under the bill, including per-person removal costs and the confidential financial memorandum signed between the two countries, in advance of the Bill entering into force.
Amendment 34, page 6, line 39, at end insert—
“(1A) This Act comes into force in Scotland on the day after the Scottish parliament grants its legislative consent to this Act.”.
This amendment would prevent the Bill coming into effect in Scotland until after it had been agreed to by the Scottish Parliament.
Clauses 9 and 10 stand part.
New clause 2—Monitoring and enforcement of conditions (No. 2)—
“(1) If the conditions of subsection (2) are met, then no provision of this Act shall have effect until such as time as each House of Parliament has passed a motion agreeing that the Act remain in effect.
(2) The conditions of this subsection are that the Monitoring Committee has—
(a) published a report noting that any provision of the UK-Rwanda treaty is not being adhered to by either party,
(b) published a report noting that the conditions under which asylum seekers are being held in Rwanda are materially different to those in place at the point where the UK-Rwanda treaty was signed, or
(c) published a report in the last six months confirming that neither (2)(a) or (2)(b) have in their view been necessary.
(3) For the purposes of this section, the Monitoring Committee refers to the Committee established by Article 15 of the UK-Rwanda treaty: provision of an asylum partnership.”.
New clause 3—Effect in Northern Ireland—
“The provisions of this Act shall have effect in Northern Ireland, notwithstanding Section 7A of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.”
New clause 4—Court of Session—
“Notwithstanding anything in this Act the supervisory jurisdiction and the nobile officium of the Court of Session are preserved.”
New clause 5—Monitoring Committee—
“(1) A Monitoring Committee overseeing removals to Rwanda must be established and maintained in accordance with Article 15 of the Rwanda Treaty.
(2) The Monitoring Committee must report to Parliament every 90 days from when it is first established to confirm that the obligations set out in the Rwanda Treaty are being complied with.
(3) If a report made under subsection (2) either (a) is not received within a 90-day period or (b) does not confirm that the relevant obligations are being complied with, the provisions of this Act relating to the removal of persons to Rwanda do not apply.
(4) Reports made under subsection (2) may be taken into consideration in proceedings of any court or tribunal.”
This new clause places the Monitoring Committee for the Rwanda Treaty on a statutory basis, requires regular reporting to Parliament, and ensures that their findings can be reviewed and can affect the operation of measures in the Act resulting from this Bill.
New clause 7—Reporting requirements—
“(1) Within 60 days of this Act receiving Royal Assent, and at every 90 days subsequently, the Secretary of State must provide a written report to Parliament setting out—
(a) the number of individuals relocated under the Rwanda Treaty,
(b) the current location and immigration status of any individuals relocated under the Rwanda Treaty, and
(c) the quarterly and total costs incurred to transfer individuals to Rwanda under the Rwanda Treaty, including processing costs.
(2) The Secretary of State must also notify Parliament within 10 days of any direct payments being made to the Republic of Rwanda under the terms of the Rwanda Treaty.”
This new clause requires the Secretary to report regularly to Parliament on the operation of the Rwanda Treaty, and to promptly notify Parliament of any payments made by the UK Government to the Republic of Rwanda under the terms of the Rwanda Treaty.
New clause 8—Return of individuals due to serious criminal offences—
“(1) A Minister of the Crown must lay a statement before Parliament within 40 days if both of the following conditions are met—
(a) the Secretary of State has approved a request from the Republic of Rwanda to return to the UK a person previously relocated under the terms of the Rwanda Treaty,
(b) the person specified in (a) had their permission to remain in the Republic of Rwanda revoked owing to the person’s participation in serious crime.
(2) If Parliament is notified of the conditions being met as set out in section (1),—
(a) a motion must be moved by a Minister of the Crown to be debated on the floor of the House of Commons, and
(b) the motion must require the House to—
(i) consider the statement laid before Parliament under section (1), and
(ii) consider whether or not as a result of the contents of the statement, there should be a suspension of the Rwanda Treaty.
(3) For the purposes of this section—
“the Rwanda Treaty” means the agreement between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Government of the Republic of Rwanda for the provision of an asylum partnership to strengthen shared international commitments on the protection of refugees and migrants, signed at Kigali on 5 December 2023;
“Minister of the Crown” has the same meaning as in the Ministers of the Crown Act 1975.”.
New clause 9—Removals to Rwanda under the Illegal Migration Act 2023—
“Within 60 days of this Act receiving Royal Assent, the Secretary of State must lay before Parliament a statement referring to all individuals whose asylum claims have been deemed inadmissible since the granting of Royal Assent to the Illegal Migration Act 2023, confirming—
(a) the number of such individuals due to be removed to Rwanda under the Rwanda Treaty,
(b) the timetable for these removals, and
(c) the arrangements in place for any such individuals not due to be removed to Rwanda during the time period set out in the Rwanda Treaty.”.
This new clause requires the publication of a timetable for the Government’s plans to remove the 33,000 asylum cases accrued under the provisions of the Illegal Migration Act 2023 to Rwanda.
New clause 13—Suspension of Act if Monitoring Committee not in operation—
“(1) This Act ceases to have effect on the day after the Secretary of State has laid before Parliament a statement that the Monitoring Committee under Article 15 of the Rwanda Treaty has (for whatever reason) ceased to function.
(2) The suspension of this Act under subsection (1) is terminated (and this Act accordingly resumes effect) on the day after the Secretary of State has laid before Parliament a statement that the Monitoring Committee under Article 15 of the Rwanda Treaty has started to function normally after a period when it had ceased to function.”.
This new clause makes the operation of the Act resulting from this Bill dependent on the continued operation of the Monitoring Committee to be established under Article 15 of the Rwanda Treaty.
Amendment 39, in clause 1, page 1, line 2, leave out from “to” to “the” in line 3 and insert
“uphold the intention of Parliament to respect and abide by the Human Rights Act 1988 and International law (see subsection (6)) in respect of”.
This amendment rewords part of the declaratory Clause 1.
Amendment 40, page 1, leave out line 6.
Amendment 41, page 1, line 7, leave out paragraph (a).
This amendment aims to remove the treaty section from the bill and ensure there’s a separate debate on the matter.
Amendment 42, page 1, line 11, leave out paragraph (b).
Amendment 31, page 2, line 4, leave out subsection (4).
The effect of this amendment is to remove the reference to the sovereignty of parliament and the assertion that an Act is unaffected by international law.
Amendment 43, page 2, line 6, leave out “the validity of an Act is unaffected by” and insert
“Parliament of the United Kingdom will normally legislate with the intention of abiding by, complying with, and implementing, international law”.
Amendment 44, page 2, line 7, leave out subsection (5).
This amendment leaves out the definition for the purposes of this Bill of a “safe country”.
Amendment 54, page 2, line 9, leave out from first “Kingdom” to “and” in line 11.
This amendment would remove from the Bill text which suggests that Parliament can determine whether the UK is in compliance with international law.
Amendment 55, page 2, line 14, leave out from “country” to end of line 19.
This amendment would remove from the Bill text which suggests that Parliament can determine whether the UK is in compliance with international law.
Clause 1 stand part.