Rwanda Bill Could Stay Stuck In Parliament Until After Easter

Rishi Sunak's flagship Rwanda Bill could remain caught in parliamentary "ping-pong" until after Easter recess as peers in the House of Lords increasingly believe a new set of amendments to the legislation could scrape through.

If the Lords approve any changes to the Bill, which is being debated in the upper house today, the updated version will be returned to the Commons for approval by MPs, which could push further wrangling over the controversial legislation back several more weeks. While it is widely expected that the Bill will ultimately pass, there are still several areas of contention between the two houses.

Peers spent Tuesday revising and redrafting amendments to the Safety of Rwanda Bill – the legislation designed to realise the government’s plans to send asylum seekers to the African country – before it is put before them again this afternoon.

Amendments that have made their way onto the paper for consideration include a request that the government have “due regard for domestic and international law,” replacing peers’ previous demand that ministers maintain “full compliance with domestic and international law”. 

Another, which aims to give domestic courts the power to prevent or delay removing somebody to Rwanda, states that it will be for “no longer than is strictly necessary”. 

It is understood that after the first round of Lords amendments were rejected by the Commons, peers have narrowed their focus in the hope that the government could be prepared to give some ground. 

The Safety of Rwanda Bill declares Rwanda a safe country, as the government’s previous attempts to send asylum seekers to the country have been caught up by challenges in both domestic and international courts. 

In November, the Supreme Court