Senior Tory slams Braverman's Rwanda scheme after report claiming it will cost £169k per migrant
27 June 2023, 8:53
Senior Tory MP Caroline Noakes has hit out at Suella Braverman's Rwanda scheme after it was revealed that the cost of the deportations will be as much as £169,000 per asylum seeker.
The Chair of the Commons Women and Equalities Select Committee hit out as the plans on LBC News, blasting the plans as "expensive" and inappropriate.
New data from the Home Office show the cost of sending one migrant to Rwanda could cost the taxpayer as much as £169,000.
Ms Noakes said: "I've never supported the scheme to remove people to Rwanda for their asylum claim to be determined within the Rwandan system.
Noakes added: "I don't think this is an appropriate mechanism but I think what these figures have shown us is something I have argued all along: it is extremely expensive, and I am far from convinced that the British taxpayer is going to get value for money from a scheme which has seen millions paid to the Rwandan government so far without a single person being removed with additional costs for a chartered plane which never took off, or the court costs as this goes through the legal process."
The data was published in an economic impact assessment from the Home Office on the Illegal Immigration Bill, which was introduced to stop small boat crossings “by detaining and swiftly removing people who make dangerous and illegal journeys to the UK”.
It would cost up to £169,000 to relocate every migrant under the Bill, which would include flights, detention and a £105,000 payment to Rwanda per person.
"I have always thought this was a flawed scheme, and the Home Office's own figures that are out today show us just how expensive it is going to be," Noakes concluded.
The report also found that nearly two in five people would need to be deterred from crossing the Channel, at 37%, in order for the Bill to break even.
But according to the Home Office, successfully deterring one migrant from crossing over to the UK through the new policy could save between £106,000 and £165,000.
However, the report did note that: “The Bill is a novel and untested scheme, and it is therefore uncertain what level of deterrence impact it will have.”
It also highlighted agreement from academics that there is “little to no evidence” that policy changes act as an effective deterrent to migrants.
This contradicted other evidence in the assessment, from countries such as Australia, which suggested there is a “stronger basis” to believe policy change could act as a deterrent.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman said of the findings: “Our Impact Assessment shows that doing nothing is not an option. “We cannot allow a system to continue which incentivises people to risk their lives and pay people smugglers to come to this country illegally, while placing an unacceptable strain on the UK taxpayer.
“I urge MPs and Peers to back the Bill to stop the boats, so we can crack down on people smuggling gangs while bringing our asylum system back into balance.”
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The SNP’s Home Affairs spokesperson, Alison Thewliss MP slammed the report’s findings, as she said: “The astronomical cost of this policy adds an extra layer of disgust in those already opposed to these plans.
“At a time where so many are forced to flee persecution and unimaginable terrors it speaks to the inhumane priorities of the Tories that they would seek to enforce this.
“Especially as for tens of millions across the UK mortgages, energy bills, and food prices continue to soar, all while the UK government does nothing.
“The Tories are happy to spend billions deporting desperate people but not to help them with basic living costs.”
The report comes after Ms Braverman’s plans to house asylum seekers on barges were branded “unworkable” after she missed her own target to introduce the first vessel this week.
She promised MPs that the Bibby Stockholm, an accommodation vessel with a capacity to house around 500 people, would be in the Dorset dock a week ago.
Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Alistair Carmichael said: "This seems to be another case of Home Office policy by press release that is failing to materialise.
"Braverman's plan for a barge on the Dorset coast is an unworkable plan that is wasting time and money, much like all of this Government's asylum policy."
The Illegal Migration Bill is scheduled to return to the House of Lords on Thursday.