Lords Seek To Bolster Role Of Supreme Court With Rwanda Bill

The House of Lords will vote on a fresh wave of amendments to the government's Rwanda Bill on Monday and Wednesday, with peers placing much of their focus on the role of the Supreme Court in deporting illegal migrants to Rwanda.

As voting began on the amendments on Monday, the government were defeated heavily on Amendment 2, which said the Rwanda legislation must comply with international law by 274 votes to 172, a majority of 102.

The Government's controversial Rwanda scheme seeks to deport asylum seekers arriving by irregular routes, such as on small boats, to Rwanda for processing and settlement. It was announced under Boris Johnson's premiership but has failed multiple legal hurdles in the years since. 

Last year, the Supreme Court struck down the policy ruling Rwanda was not a safe country and that people deported to Rwanda for processing would not be protected from the potential for "refoulement" if sent to the African nation. 

In response to the ruling, the government re-wrote the legislation, which now includes declaring Rwanda a safe country – despite the ruling of the court. 

The Bill, which passed its third reading in the House of Commons last year and will begin its report stage this week with Lords, will see peers vote on multiple amendments.

Labour peer Baroness Shami Chakrabarti told PoliticsHome the core focus of amendments would be to restore the "jurisdiction" of the Supreme Court. 

"In legal terms, and rule of law terms, what the government has done is taken the Supreme Court saying Rwanda is not safe, and they've said: 'Well, we're going to pass a law to make Rwanda safe – whether it is, or it isn't'. In other words, 'we're going to not let the courts interfere'," she explained. "It's banana republic