LONDON – A British government plan to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda sparked another day of legal wrangling on Tuesday as a small number of them waited to be told if they would board a jet bound for Africa later in the day .
Originally, dozens of people who had arrived in Britain from France were said to have been on the flight expected to depart Tuesday evening, although that number is expected to be reduced to around seven due to legal challenges.
Several of those cases were heard on Tuesday, raising the prospect that the passenger list could shrink further. But the government still says it wants the plane to take off, even with just a handful on board, despite costs estimated by British news media at a staggering £500,000, or about $600,000, and despite protests, including from church leaders .
The arrival of a small but steady number of asylum seekers on boats from France is a growing political problem for Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who led the 2016 campaign for Britain to leave the European Union, arguing it would allow the country to to take back control of its borders.
Relations with the French government are tense after Brexit. And, with limited cooperation with French authorities, Mr Johnson’s government has looked for other ways to curb the arrivals that have become an embarrassing symbol of Britain’s failure to guard its post-Brexit borders.
The British government announced in April that it had signed a deal with Rwanda that would allow the processing and settlement of asylum seekers in the African country. In return, Britain would pay Rwanda £120 million for economic development programs.
The deal has sparked fierce opposition in Britain for being unworkable and unethical, including from religious figures, government officials and – according to the Times of London – Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne.
Critics accuse Mr Johnson, who narrowly survived a no-confidence vote last week, of deliberately fueling the issue for political advantage. They argue that even if very few asylum seekers are deported, the policy is intended to send a signal to voters that Britain is tough on those who want to enter Britain by crossing the English Channel , many of them in small boats.
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss told the LBC radio station that the flights should be seen in the larger context of illegal migration and of criminal gangs making money by bringing migrants to Britain.
The government, Ms Truss said, had to make sure “that if they are not on the flight today, they are on subsequent flights. But fundamentally, we need to break the business model and that’s why we need to take this action.”
The debate over the Rwanda asylum plan comes at a time when immigration to Britain from countries outside the European Union continues to increase.
Government critics say Britain’s policies are effectively criminalizing those who seek asylum, making it impossible for most genuine refugees to enter the country legally.
Last year, at least 27 people drowned while trying to make the perilous journey across the English Channel, one of the world’s busiest shipping routes – and even that tragedy didn’t stop more people from entering Britain on small boats.