Rishi Sunak will only be satisifed with the Rwanda scheme when flights get off the ground, Downing Street insists

Rishi Sunak will not rest until his plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda is working, Downing Street insisted yesterday.

With the Government still hoping to get planes off the ground by the spring, No 10 said the Prime Minister is ‘very focused on getting on with that job’.

Mr Sunak headed off a Tory mutiny on Tuesday over the flagship scheme but he faces a festive period of infighting as MPs plot to amend the draft legislation.

They voted by 313 votes to 269 to approve in principle the Safety of Rwanda Bill despite fears that rebellious backbenchers could inflict a humiliating defeat.

The PM’s press secretary said of Mr Sunak: ‘He will be content frankly only once flights are going off and the deterrent is there, and it is stopping the gangs, and we can get the boats further down.

With the Government still hoping to get planes off the ground by the spring, No 10 said the Prime Minister (pictured) is ‘very focused on getting on with that job’

The PM’s press secretary said of Mr Sunak: ‘He will be content frankly only once flights are going off and the deterrent is there, and it is stopping the gangs, and we can get the boats further down’ (file image)

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‘It is a third down already at a time when illegal arrivals are up across Europe. He is encouraged by the work we are doing and the impact it is having – but he won’t rest until we have got this working.’

James Cleverly played down fractures in the ranks, insisting ‘the Conservative Party is united’ to get the legislation right.

The Home Secretary added: ‘We want to get flights off next year, ideally in the spring.’ 

He pledged to talk to colleagues in Right-wing factions to ‘understand their thinking and try to harvest their ideas to make things better’.

MPs said the mood was more ‘positive’ among the so-called ‘five families’ – a loose alliance of five different Right-wing Tory groups – but they are still seeking to tighten the Bill.

Yet Justice Secretary Alex Chalk suggested the Government will not cede to MPs wanting to toughen the Bill to deny asylum seekers appeal rights.

He told Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights: ‘We think there are certain aspects which are important to uphold to ensure that we remain within international law.’

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