Germany could take over UK-funded Rwanda plan – DNyuz

Germany is considering deporting migrants to Rwanda, where it could use asylum facilities paid for by the UK.

Joachim Stamp, Germany’s migration commissioner, proposed designating Rwanda as a third country for migrants amid mounting pressure on the coalition government to discourage and restrict asylum seekers from entering the EU.

He suggested it could be part of a wider move by the EU to use existing asylum facilities in Rwanda, which were originally intended for Rishi Sunak’s plan to deport illegal migrants to the east African country.

Labour has reallocated resources from the scrapped Rwanda plan to efforts to disrupt and destroy supply routes for boats, engines and equipment, and to disrupt the criminal networks that support people-smuggling gangs in Europe.

Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, called on Britain’s spies to tackle the small boat crisis, saying it was a “moral duty” to crack down on people-smuggling gangs.

The Home Secretary has called together the intelligence agencies MI5, MI6 and GCHQ for a summit on Friday to discuss how to prevent more dangerous border crossings.

The Home Office said the spy agencies already deploy a “formidable covert capability” to support the National Crime Agency (NCA) “in penetrating and dismantling gangs at every operational level – from facilitators to financiers”.

Sir Keir Starmer scrapped the Rwanda plan immediately after winning the election in July. The money saved was used to set up a new Border Security Command, designed to tackle people-smuggling gangs using counter-terrorism measures.

The UK has already spent at least £318 million on asylum services and stimulating economic development in Rwanda, but this amount cannot be recouped.

Under Mr Stamp’s proposal, asylum procedures in Rwanda would be carried out under the supervision of the United Nations. “We currently have no third country that has come forward, with the exception of Rwanda,” he said in a Table Media podcast published on Thursday.

Mr Stamp, a member of the FDP youth coalition who holds a position in the German Interior Ministry, said the model would specifically target refugees crossing the EU’s eastern borders.

“My suggestion would be that we focus on this group. It’s about 10,000 people a year,” he said, rejecting broader proposals from the Conservative opposition to apply such a model to all refugees.

Members of the opposition CDU party visited Rwanda nine months ago as part of their new policy to process migrants in third countries.

Leading CDU members claimed the plans would deter migrants from crossing the Mediterranean and argued that countries such as Rwanda would be willing to strike deals.

A Rwanda spokesman told The Telegraph that the country would be open to discussing an asylum deal with Germany. He said: “Rwanda has made it clear that they are happy to work with anyone who shares their desire to find a long-term solution to the migration problem.”

However, the German move has sparked a backlash from leading Conservative MPs who were involved in the Rwanda plan during their time in government.

James Cleverly, the shadow home secretary, said: “Labour’s first move in government was to scrap the Rwanda plan. Now Germany wants to use the facilities we built. The only people who benefit from Labour’s reckless immigration policy are people smugglers and the EU.”

Suella Braverman, former interior minister, said: “Germany’s decision to adopt the Conservatives’ Rwanda plan is further evidence of support within the EU for the need for meaningful deterrence.

“Starmer’s abandonment of the plan makes the UK look like a soft touch for illegal migrants, sets us apart from other EU countries struggling to deal with the migration crisis, and wastes the vital work that went into setting up and running the plan. A huge mistake that Starmer will come to regret.”

Robert Jenrick, a former immigration minister, said: “Labour’s decision to scrap, not strengthen, the Rwanda plan looks more foolish by the day. Leaders across Europe can see that you need a deterrent to stop illegal migration. Sir Keir has squandered such a much-valued partnership and is now utterly powerless to stop the boats.”

Tony Smith, former director general of the Border Force, who worked on the Rwanda plan, said: “It was only a matter of time before another country got involved. We’ve done all the groundwork for that.”

Mr Stamp wants to change EU rules to allow Rwanda to be used for offshore processing of asylum applications. He proposed removing the so-called “connection element” in the new Common European Asylum System, which currently requires external asylum procedures to be carried out in countries where the asylum seeker has a social connection.

In December, the European Union agreed to new rules to deal with irregular arrivals of asylum seekers and migrants — a deal hailed as a breakthrough after nearly a decade of bitter wrangling over the issue. The pact could take until late 2025 to fully come into force.

The story Germany could adopt UK-funded Rwanda plan first appeared on The Telegraph.