Rwanda latest news: Cleverly says migrant flights must 'move quickly' after striking new deal

James Cleverly has said Britain must now be able to “move quickly” to start Rwanda deportation migrant flights after a new treaty was agreed with the African nation.

The Home Secretary hailed it as a far more “robust” agreement than previous proposals for the deportation scheme, which have been frustrated after they were deemed unlawful by the Court of Appeal and then, last month, the Supreme Court.

The treaty will address concerns by the Supreme Court, including assurances that Rwanda will not remove anybody transferred under the partnership to another country.

At a press conference held in Kigali alongside Vincent Biruta, his Rwandan counterpart, Mr Cleverly said: “Of course we want to see this part of our wider migration plan up and running as quickly as possible. We feel very strongly that this treaty addresses all the issues raised by their lordships in the Supreme Court and we have worked very closely with our Rwandan partners to ensure that it does so.

“I cannot see any credible reason why Rwanda’s track record as a partner, including as a long-term partner for the ECHR, bearing in mind the ECHR sent 65 refugees to Rwanda the day after the judgment... I really hope that we can now move quickly. We’ve addressed the issues that were raised by their lordships in this treaty, and that will be reflected in domestic legislation soon.

“Because we are absolutely committed to breaking the business model of these people-smuggling gangs, to create a safe and welcoming environment with our friends and partners here in Rwanda, but also making sure that mass migration is well managed into this country.”

04:01 PM GMT

That's all for today...

Thank you for joining me on another busy day in Westminster and beyond as James Cleverly unveiled the UK’s new migration treaty with Rwanda.

My colleague Benedict Smith and I will be back tomorrow to guide you through the latest.

03:58 PM GMT

Pictured: Lord Cameron back at the despatch box

03:53 PM GMT

Lockdown trashed Britain’s economy – not Brexit

It led to five years of instability. It undermined a string of Prime Ministers and Chancellors. And it stopped businesses from investing. According to Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, Brexit has been a major cause of the woeful performance of the UK economy over the last few years. Really? writes Matthew Lynn.

If Hunt wants to find the true culprit, he needn’t look far. Sure, the chaotic implementation of the vote hardly helped, but it’s not as if Germany and France are doing much better. It was lockdown, and his own punishing tax rises, that crushed growth.

A conference organised by the left-leaning Resolution Foundation was never going to be a sympathetic venue for a Tory Chancellor. Even so, Hunt probably scored a few brownie points with his audience yesterday by pinning the blame for stagnant growth on our departure from the EU.

Matthew Lynn: Hunt is responsible for a disgraceful evasion

03:23 PM GMT

Lord Cameron is up in the Lords

Taking questions for the first time in his job as Foreign Secretary, Lord Cameron said since February 2022 the UK has committed more than £4.7bn in humanitarian and economic support to Ukraine.

Lord Robertson quipped the former prime minister can look forward to a “monthly interrogation” in the Lords, adding other peers have to “go around saying ‘do you know who I used to be?’”

“Can I commend him on the fact that his very first visit as Foreign Secretary was to Ukraine, because the Ukrainians are not just fighting for their country and their land and their lives, but they are also fighting very much for us. Surely the fact is they don’t need more visits and more speeches, they need more weapons, they need more guns, they need more ammunition and they need more equipment. Could I ask the Foreign Secretary this question - why was there no additional military aid offered in the Autumn Budget?”

Lord Cameron replied: “We’ll continue to give the support that’s necessary... I think the one area we can do more is trying to mobilise the British defence industries to produce the stocks that are needed, rather than simply trying to run down stocks.”

03:12 PM GMT

James Cleverly: We will do whatever it takes to stop the boats

03:11 PM GMT

Tom Harris: The SNP’s heat pumps farce has reached a catastrophic new low

It’s probably fair to say that the Scottish Government’s heat pump strategy is performing below expectations, writes Tom Harris.

The latest bump in the road to net zero is the £3.5 million price tag now attached to the installation of a new electric heating system in the Crown Office (public prosecutor’s) building in Elgin, Aberdeenshire. That’s a lot of public money for the cost of a single heat pump. Troublesome SNP MSP Fergus Ewing wants to know why the decision to carry out the work was made in the first place.

“This fiscal fiasco is wasting millions of pounds which could be better spent,” said Ewing, who was suspended from the SNP earlier this year after he voted with the opposition at Holyrood in a vote of no confidence against the Scottish Greens environment minister, Lorna Slater.

“This is the price of having Green ministers in Government. They impose their madcap schemes on normally sensible organisations like the Crown Office – though why they went along with this must be independently reviewed. Surely that huge sum of money should have been used to reduce court delays or help struggling police budgets.”

Tom Harris: The SNP would do well to ditch their Green coalition partner

02:55 PM GMT

Coming up: Lord Cameron's first question time

David Cameron is set to hold his first question time in the Lords since his shock return to frontline politics as part of Rishi Sunak’s reshuffle last month.

You can watch the Foreign Secretary take questions at the top of this live blog from 3pm.

02:49 PM GMT

Richard Tice: The Tories are preparing another immigration betrayal

Promises, promises. After years of promising to take back control, the Tories lost control, deliberately. They created Britain’s mass immigration catastrophe with post-Brexit open borders policies that have led to unprecedented numbers coming to this crowded country, writes Richard Tice.

Now that the consequences are clear, and thanks in part to pressure from Reform UK, yet another Tory home secretary is talking tough on immigration. The trouble is, there’ve been four of them in as many years. They all talked tough; they all failed. And our country has paid the price.

It’s important to put the sheer scale of this failure in perspective. Net migration in 2022 has been revised up, to a record 745,000 people. For 2023, the number is 672,000. The small boats crisis has seen 38,000 people arrive by crossing the Channel this year. Make no mistake: the last few years of Conservative government will be seen as a historical landmark – and a cataclysm for Britain.

Richard Tice: No one should take the Tories seriously

02:15 PM GMT

More 2019 Conservative voters will back Reform over Labour at next general election

More people who voted Conservative in 2019 plan to back Reform UK at the next general election than the Labour Party, a poll has found.

Just over half (55 per cent) of those who backed the Tories under Boris Johnson in 2019 plan to do so again under Rishi Sunak, according to research from Redfield & Wilton Strategies.

Fifteen per cent of 2019 Conservative voters plan to back Reform, which is to the Right of the Tories on issues including net zero and legal and illegal immigration.

Despite Labour having a national poll lead of about 20 points, only 13 per cent of those surveyed said they planned to support Sir Keir Starmer’s party.

Read the full story here

02:10 PM GMT

The deal is sealed

01:43 PM GMT

Cleverly: No money given to Rwanda as part of this deal

Asked how much the UK Government had agreed to pay Rwanda in light of the treaty, James Cleverly replied: “Let me make it clear. The Rwandan government has not asked for and we have not provided any funding linked to the signing of this treaty.

“The financial arrangement which inevitably comes as part of the international agreement reflects the costs that may be imposed on Rwanda through the changes that this partnership has created in their systems, in their legal systems and their institutions.

“But this treaty, as I say no money was asked for by the Rwandans for this treaty, no money was provided to the Rwandans for this treaty. Dealing with migration is important and it is not a cost-free option but we regard it as the right thing to do both to protect our borders, to dissuade people from putting themselves in the hands of people smugglers and making these dangerous journeys often in unseaworthy vessels whether it be across the Mediterranean or across the Channel.

“Rwanda is helping the UK in our fight against illegal migration and people smuggling. They are doing so professionally, thoughtfully and as a partner genuinely willing to work with us on what is increasingly a global challenge.”

01:37 PM GMT

James Cleverly: There is now no 'credible' reason to block Rwanda

Asked what made him think the Rwanda scheme could be a success “this time” and if he could guarantee migrants would be on their way there next spring, James Cleverly replied: “The UK has been working with Rwanda not just as a Commonwealth partner on a range of issues which I alluded to in my opening remarks, but specifically on the migrant and economic development partnership.

“Throughout the time that we’ve been working with the Rwandan government they have shown an energy and professionalism and a desire to work in a collaborative partnership way with the UK.”

He added: “Of course we want to see this part of our wider migration plan up and running as quickly as possible. We feel very strongly that this treaty addresses all the issues raised by their lordships in the Supreme Court and we have worked very closely with our Rwandan partners to ensure that it does so.

“I cannot see any credible reason why Rwanda’s track record as a partner, including as a long-term partner for the ECHR, bearing in mind the ECHR sent 65 refugees to Rwanda the day after the judgment... I really hope that we can now move quickly. We’ve addressed the issues that were raised by their lordships in this treaty, and that will be reflected in domestic legislation soon.

“Because we are absolutely committed to breaking the business model of these people-smuggling gangs, to create a safe and welcoming environment with our friends and partners here in Rwanda, but also making sure that mass migration is well managed into this country.”

01:33 PM GMT

Cleverly: Rwanda is a strong and important partner to the UK

James Clveerly insisted those coming to the UK should do so through safe and legal routes, adding that those who arrive illegally “will not be able to remain in the UK”.

“Your country [Rwanda] has made a clear and unambiguous commitment to the safety of people who come here. You’ve also made a strong commitment to work with the UK and international partners to make sure that the robustness of your judicial system is clearly on display. And we are very proud to be a long standing partner in that endeavour.

“This meeting today is of course marking a particularly important part of our bilateral relationship... Rwanda has shown itself to be a strong and important partner to the UK and I’m very proud that this treaty today amplifies that relationship, and I am very much looking forward to continue working with you in my new role as Home Secretary.”

01:31 PM GMT

James Cleverly: New treaty builds on joint work with Rwanda

James Cleverly opened the press conference by thanking Vincent Biruta, the Rwandan foreign minister, for welcoming him and his delegation to Rwanda.

He hailed the Rwandan government as “professional, thoughtful and serious partners on the world stage”, insisting it was “exemplified” by the migration partnership that has been developed in recent months and has now been “strengthened and enhanced” through today’s treaty.

“Rwanda has now established a strong reputation for the humane and professional administration of refugees and migrants. This is something understood by the UK and the multilateral community.

“The treaty that we signed today builds on that joint work. It takes the positive, professional attitude that you and your colleagues display and allies it with the work that the UK is doing to ensure that we break the business model of those evil people smuggling gangs. We want to make sure that people can live in safety and prosperity and that is why, in addition to the migration element of this partnership, the economic development part is incredibly important.”

01:20 PM GMT

'Nigel says vote remain'

As former Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage continues his run on I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!, GB News - on which he is a presenter - have given the politician his own theme music:

01:10 PM GMT

Tory MPs plot to overturn Sadiq Khan’s Ulez expansion

Conservative backbenchers are plotting to overturn Sadiq Khan’s Ulez expansion.

The Ultra Low Emissions Zone was expanded to the outskirts of London in August, but a Private Members’ Bill being introduced on Wednesday could give the Government the power to reverse it.

In August, the Government supported an amendment to the Levelling Up and Regeneration bill to allow London boroughs to “opt-out” of future low emissions schemes.

It came after the High Court dismissed a challenge led by five Conservative councils in July, ruling that Mr Khan did have the power to alter the original scheme.

Madeline Ross, our Money Reporter, has more here

12:52 PM GMT

How Cleverly plans to deliver biggest ever reduction in net migration

James Cleverly has pledged to deliver the biggest ever reduction in net migration, unveiling a package of measures that he said would cut the number of arrivals by 300,000.

The Home Secretary set out a five-point plan, which mirrored proposals put forward by Suella Braverman, the former home secretary, and Robert Jenrick, the immigration minister, in a move designed to head off a revolt by Right-wing Tory MPs over record migration figures.

Foreign care workers will be banned from bringing family members into the UK, the salary threshold required for skilled foreign workers to get a visa will rise to £38,700, and the scheme allowing companies to pay overseas staff 20 per cent below the going rate in shortage areas will be scrapped.

Rishi Sunak and Mr Cleverly are under pressure from Right-wing MPs to adopt an equally hardline approach to illegal migration and exempt deportation flights to Rwanda from domestic and international human rights laws.

Charles Hymas and Ben Riley-Smith have more here

12:36 PM GMT

Cleverly hails 'vastly more robust' Rwanda agreement

James Cleverly has hailed the “vastly more robust” migration deal he has struck with Rwanda today.

A No 10 spokesman said in a readout of today’s Cabinet meeting: “The Home Secretary said the treaty was the culmination of months of work and meant we now have the strongest possible agreement with Rwanda and one which goes far beyond that of the UNHCR’s with Rwanda.

“The Immigration Minister emphasised that the arrangements now in place provide strong and substantive assurances that are vastly more robust than those considered by the courts around 15 months previously.”

12:26 PM GMT

Rishi Sunak's spokesman rejects calls for cap on migrant visas

11:49 AM GMT

Record number of fossil fuel delegates at Cop28 in UAE, say campaigners

A record number of fossil fuel delegates are attending the climate talks in the United Arab Emirates, campaigners have said.

Nearly 2,500 people connected to the coal, oil and gas industries have been registered for Cop28 in Dubai.

This is more than four times the number of delegates with fossil fuels backgrounds recorded last year at Cop27 in Egypt.

At Cop26, in Glasgow, there were some 500 such delegates.

Max Stephens has the full story here

11:33 AM GMT

Labour warns new migration rules could lead to ‘increase in rushed marriages’

Labour has warned that the Government’s new immigration rules could lead to a “big increase in rushed marriages” in the months before they take effect.

The minimum income needed for British workers to bring a spouse or dependant into the UK on a family visa will rise from £18,600 to £38,700 next spring under plans announced on Monday by James Cleverly, the Home Secretary.

The new figure is the same as the skilled salary threshold, which has also been raised. Applicants will have a right of appeal where they can seek to demonstrate “exceptional” reasons.

But Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, suggested the measure should be reconsidered by an expert panel before it is introduced as she expressed fears it could have unintended consequences.

Read the full story here

11:21 AM GMT

Covid wiped out British pupils’ gains in maths and English, major international study finds

Covid wiped out improvements in maths and reading in the UK but not in some other countries, a major international study has found.

Numeracy and literacy had been improving in UK schools following changes made to the curriculum nearly a decade ago. However, the latest Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) league table shows those gains have been lost since the pandemic lockdown.

British teenagers scored 489 for maths on the subject index used in the study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), down from a record 502 in 2018, and 494 in 2015.

For reading, the UK’s average test score fell by 10 points to 494, below 2015 levels. A 10-point decline was the equivalent of half a year of learning.

Louisa Clarence-Smith, our Education Editor, has the story

11:14 AM GMT

'Our economy isn’t safe with Labour. Don’t trust Keir Starmer’s promises'

As a Labour government in waiting conducts the most intellectually dishonest election campaign since the Lib Dems in 2010, it is becoming progressively trickier to get at the truth through all the triangulating gibberish, writes Sherelle Jacobs.

Sherelle Jacobs: Labour’s plans are ridden with contradictions

10:46 AM GMT

Tory minister defends decision to take knee during Black Lives Matter protests

A Tory minister has defended her decision to take the knee at the height of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests following the murder of George Floyd.

Laura Farris, the safeguarding and victims minister, was photographed performing the gesture at an anti-racism event in her Newbury constituency when she was a backbencher in June 2020.

Ms Farris told the House magazine: “I just thought it was really important to be receptive to other people’s voices.

“I appreciate the crime [the murder of George Floyd] took place in the United States and I’m not drawing equivalence, but people there were giving their view about structural, systemic experiences of what it was like to be a young Black man through the criminal justice system or through the care system.

“I was totally ready to listen to those voices. I don’t think that’s antithetical to being an MP; I think that’s core to being an MP and why you go into public service.”

10:34 AM GMT

Ministers arrive at Downing Street for Cabinet meeting

10:32 AM GMT

‘They’ve now sent more Home Secretaries than they have asylum seekers to Rwanda’

Yvette Cooper repeated her criticisms of the Rwanda plan as her opposite number James Cleverly touched down in Kigali.

Ms Cooper, Labour’s shadow home secretary, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “They’ve now sent more Home Secretaries than they have asylum seekers to Rwanda.

“He’s gone with another cheque book to try and continue to pursue a failing policy that is still only likely to ever affect a few hundred people whilst over a thousand people arrived on small boats over the last week because they’re failing to tackle the criminal gangs.”

Labour has said it would cancel the Rwanda scheme even if it succeeded in slashing small boat arrivals, with party leader Sir Keir Starmer calling it “the wrong policy”.

10:12 AM GMT

Labour warn that new migration rules could fuel "big increase in rushed marriages"

Changes to the minimum income required for workers to bring a spouse or dependant into the UK could lead to a dramatic increase in rushed marriages over the next few months, Yvette Cooper has warned.

Ms Cooper, the shadow home secretary, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “What we’re asking for is the migration advisory committee to look at this. It looks as though the committee hasn’t actually been asked to look at this for over 10 years.

“So they should be asked to look at this very swiftly, and to look at what the best way to approach this is, because at the moment this seems to have come out of thin air, with no plan at all.

“And because there’s a possibility that actually what this will lead to is a big increase in rushed marriages and so on in the next few months because of the changes in a few months’ time. So I think the migration advisory committee should look at that.”

10:05 AM GMT

Rishi Sunak suffers first Commons defeat over infected blood payouts

Rishi Sunak suffered the first Commons defeat of his premiership on Monday night after more than 20 Tory MPs sided with Labour in a vote over the infected blood scandal.

The Government made a last ditch attempt to stave off the rebellion, but it was not enough to persuade senior Tory backbenchers including former Cabinet ministers Chloe Smith and Damian Green to back down.

Other notable Tory rebels included former ministers Sir Robert Buckland, Dame Andrea Jenkyns, Robin Walker and Tracey Crouch.

Amy Gibbons, our Political Correspondent, has the full story here

09:33 AM GMT

Military personnel living in ‘deficient’ housing with black mould and broken boilers

A third of military personnel live in the lowest quality of defence accommodation available, figures reveal.

More than 25,000 members of the armed forces are being put up in homes which have been deemed the most “deficient” by official inspectors.

Of that number 1,378 are living in houses that are in such poor condition that they cannot be charged rent under Government rules.

Labour warned that soldiers were being “forced to live in homes with broken boilers, black mould, leaky roofs and endless waits for repairs”.

Read the full story here

09:07 AM GMT

Small boats efforts 'not good enough', admits Robert Jenrick

The Government’s efforts to tackle small boat crossings are “not good enough”, the immigration minister has said.

Robert Jenrick told BBC Breakfast:

08:47 AM GMT

More 2019 Tory voters set to back Reform than Labour

More people who voted Conservative in 2019 plan to back Reform at the next general election than the Labour Party, a poll has found.

Just over half (55 per cent) of those who backed the Tories under Boris Johnson in 2019 plan to do so again under Rishi Sunak, according to research from Redfield & Wilton Strategies.

Fifteen per cent of 2019 Conservative voters plan to back Reform, which is to the right of the Tories on issues including net zero and legal and illegal immigration.

Despite Labour having a national poll lead of around 20 points, only 13 per cent of those surveyed said they planned to support Sir Keir Starmer’s party.

08:34 AM GMT

Migration committee chair: 'Middle-skilled' jobs may suffer under migration plan

Some industries could struggle to recruit workers and fill vacancies as a result of the Government’s new visa rules, the chairman of the Migration Advisory Committee has said.

Professor Brian Bell: “I think we’re going to see quite a lot of what you might describe as middle-skilled jobs that are going to struggle.

“Social care will still be allowed to employ people at lower wages, the big change is workers won’t be able to bring their dependants with them, and that’s a fundamental change.”

08:26 AM GMT

Breaking: James Cleverly lands in Rwanda

08:18 AM GMT

Arise, Lord Farage?

A Conservative MP has suggested making Nigel Farage a peer in order to allow him to become home secretary and help the party grip migration.

Jonathan Gullis, who represents Stoke-on-Trent, told GB News: “I’d love to see it, personally, I think Nigel has a lot to offer.  Number one, he is a big voice on the key issues like immigration that we know are a huge number one, if not number two issue for Conservative voters particularly those in 2019 and particularly those in the Red Wall.

“Secondly, I think he’s actually an asset across the blue and the red wall. In essence, he’s able to communicate in a way many politicians aren’t able to. Probably no one closer to having the ability other than Boris Johnson to be able to get a message across clearly and concisely. So I really do hope that he comes forward and he joins and I’d be very happy to welcome him.”

Mr Gullis added: “We do need to actually deliver on the tens of thousands and maybe, maybe just maybe, the Conservatives could put Nigel Farage in the House of Lords.

“I think he would take no nonsense; he would take no prisoners. He would call out the civil service for what they are at times, which are blockers to actual government policy and make sure that we deliver on the priorities of the British public.”

08:09 AM GMT

Analysis: Cleverly’s migration politicking may be too little, too late

It was as unashamed in its naked politicking as Sir Keir Starmer purporting to be the next Thatcher in The Telegraph, writes Camilla Tominey. Legal migration was far too high, insisted border controller-in-chief James Cleverly, and the Conservatives were (finally) going to do something about it.

“Today we are taking more robust action than any government before,” he declared, as if he somehow belonged to a different tribe from the one that repeatedly promised to bring numbers down to the “tens of thousands” only to end up with 745,000 new arrivals last year – after 13 years of Tory rule.

As is ever the case with such announcements, timing was everything. The Home Secretary delivered his statement to the Commons just as Rishi Sunak’s approval rating among Tory activists was revealed to have dropped to a new low of -25.

Seemingly with the influential Conservative Home poll in mind (last month he was top of the table on plus 72, but since moving to the Home Office and denying calling Stockton-on-Tees a s---hole, he has fallen to 11th from bottom), Mr Cleverly took to his feet.

Camilla Tominey: Can the Tories save themselves from the abyss?

08:05 AM GMT

We will meet our manifesto pledge on cutting immigration, vows Robert Jenrick

Robert Jenrick has vowed that the Government will meet the 2019 Tory manifesto pledge to reduce net migration.

Figures published last week showed net migration hit a record high of 745,000 in the year to last December, three times its pre-Brexit level of 239,000.

Asked whether the manifesto commitment could be met, Mr Jenrick replied: “I think we can. What we’re setting out here is a path to do that, this will lead to at least a 300,000 reduction.

“In addition to this there are other factors at play as well, because you’re seeing the large numbers of Ukrainians, Hong Kongers and Afghans who’ve come to the country in recent years. Those numbers are starting to flow through the system.”

He added: “This matters a great deal to me and to the Government. So if we need to do more we will because we’re committed to reducing net migration. So if there are further steps we need to take in the months ahead, then we will do. But people are in no doubt that this is a very big first step.”

08:02 AM GMT

Good morning

Dominic Penna here, The Telegraph’s Political Correspondent, guiding you through today in Westminster.

The immigration minister has insisted flights to Rwanda will have taken off by the next general election as the Government seeks to crack down on both legal and illegal migration.

Asked by Sky News if he was “confident” the scheme will be operational at the time of the next national poll, Robert Jenrick replied: “I am. But we will need to do a few things to achieve that.

“The treaty that the Home Secretary is going to sign later today I hope will create a fundamentally different and better arrangement with the government of Rwanda that answers the concerns of the Supreme Court.”

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