Rishi Sunak: Home Office making ‘arrangements’ to secure Rwanda flights airline
Rishi Sunak on Tuesday suggested that plans were in place to start flying alysum seekers to Rwanda once controversial legislation passes through parliament.
The prime minister was grilled by the House of Commons liaison committee about whether RAF or commercial planes would be used for the deportations.
It comes after reports suggested that the government is having trouble finding an airline to operate the charter flights.
Responding to questions from Labour MP and chair of the home affairs select committee Dame Diana Johnson, Sunak said: “The Home Office are making all the appropriate arrangements, there’s a range of options that they’re considering.”
“I can say that the preparations are all being made and have been made for a while to operationalise the bill”, he added.
The prime minister was also challenged over the international example the Rwanda deportation plan sets by SNP MP and chair of the parliamentary joint committee on human rights Joanna Cherry.
Cherry questioned the PM over how “other nations might be influenced by the way in which the UK treats its internal international obligations”.
The PM said: “I’m very confident that our Rwanda scheme is in compliance with all our international obligations, and we’ve worked very hard to ensure that that is the case”.
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