A minister has claimed this morning that the plan to offer £3,000 to asylum seekers to voluntarily move to Rwanda is a “good use of public money”.
It comes after a report in The Times suggested that migrants who have been refused asylum in the UK will be offered thousands of pounds to move to Rwanda under a new “voluntary” scheme.
The move, which is reportedly separate from the government’s plan to send people to Rwanda to have their claims processed, has already been agreed with the east African country.
The Times reports it will be aimed at individuals who do not have an outstanding asylum claim and are in a position to be relocated swiftly to Rwanda.
Speaking this morning, business minister Kevin Hollinrake said that it “costs a lot more money than that to keep people in this country”.
Asked if the plan was a good use of taxpayers’ money and if it would undermine the separate deportation flights scheme, he told Times Radio: “Yes, it is a good use of public money, no it doesn’t undermine the scheme. Quite the opposite.
“This is a scheme that already runs, we are looking at this, we haven’t announced that’s exactly what we are going to do yet”.
He added: “So clearly £3,000 is a lot of money but it costs a lot more money than that to keep people in this country who are without merit, who have come here illegally and failed the asylum tests.”
The reported scheme is said to be an extension of the existing Home Office voluntary returns scheme, under which migrants are offered financial assistance worth up to £3,000 to leave the UK for their country of origin.
In response to the Times report, a Home Office spokesperson said: “In the last year, 19,000 people were removed voluntarily from the UK and this is an important part of our efforts to tackle illegal migration.
“We are exploring voluntary relocations for those who have no right to be here, to Rwanda, who stand ready to accept people who wish to rebuild their lives and cannot stay in the UK.
“This is in addition to our Safety of Rwanda Bill and Treaty which, when passed, will ensure people who come to the UK illegally are removed to Rwanda.”
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