Sir Keir Starmer confirms Rwanda plan ‘dead’ on day one as PM

The scheme was a key battleground during the final days of Rishi Sunak’s government.

The former prime minister made delivering the policy a key priority of his premiership, arguing it deterred people from crossing the English Channel in small boats.

Despite being announced two years ago by then-prime minister Boris Johnson, the Rwanda plan faced numerous legal challenges and never saw a flight take off.

The plans also faced a painful passage through Parliament, sparking numerous Tory rebellions.

As of 26 June, 13,195 people had come to the UK via small boat crossing in the Channel in 2024 – above the numbers for the same period in the previous four years.

Since 2018, nearly 120,000 people have come to the UK by this route.

He added: “Look at the numbers that have come over in the first six and a bit months of this year, they are record numbers, that is the problem that we are inheriting.

“It’s had the complete opposite effect and I’m not prepared to continue with gimmicks that don’t act as a deterrent.”

The new government has set illegal migration as one of their key priorities.

The Labour manifesto pledged to curb small boats crossing the Channel by hiring investigators and using counter-terror powers to “smash” criminal people smuggling gangs.

Labour has yet to reveal the full details of their scheme.

Earlier this year, Rwandan President Paul Kagame hinted that British taxpayers could be refunded if the deal collapsed.