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James Cleverly has told MPs more countries ready to take asylum seekers from the UK – if the government’s Rwanda plan succeeds.
The home secretary said ministers have held talks with several other nations who are “waiting to see what happens with Rwanda”.
At a meeting with disgruntled right-wingers, Mr Cleverly sought to allay concerns about the deportation scheme, which was struck down by the Supreme Court this month.
Having promised to publish an upgraded treaty, from an earlier memorandum of understanding, “within days”, Mr Cleverly has faced growing Tory fury over the stalled plans.
He is also facing a backlash after an interview last weekend in which he said deporting asylum seekers to the African nation was not “the be all and end all” of Britain’s immigration policy.
On Tuesday night, he sought to assure angry MPs that the government’s back-up Rwanda plan can be made to work.
He warned around 30 MPs that going too far with the new Rwanda plan – by seeking to override the European Convention on Human Rights – would see it thwarted in the House of Lords.
And he gave MPs the impression ministers are now pursuing a so-called “Goldilocks” approach – soft enough to pass through the Lords but hard enough to act as a deterrent to small boat crossings.
A source close to the home secretary said the “Goldilocks” approach is not the settled approach, and is just one of a number being considered. They also confirmed there are other countries watching both with a view to following in the UK’s footsteps, or to opening the door to a Rwanda-style scheme of their own.
While stressing he was focused on making the Rwanda scheme work, Mr Cleverly said it was part of a wider set of measures aimed at reducing channel crossings.
He also told MPs present that if the government does get Rwanda flights off the ground, other countries were ready to follow suit.
“If Rwanda does come off, there could be some other candidate countries so that it would not be just Rwanda,” one of the MPs told The Daily Telegraph.
The Times reported that Mr Cleverly said foreign governments were ready to negotiate agreements with the UK if it can be “demonstrated to work”.
He also claimed European countries such as Germany and Austria were monitoring Britain’s progress and considering similar plans.
There are believed to be around five other countries considering copying the scheme, which the government hopes will put asylum seekers on a one-way flight to Rwanda to have their asylum claims processed there.
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