‘No option should be off the table’: Rishi Sunak defends plans to crack down on immigration – after his campaign suggested migrants could be housed on cruise ships

• Rishi Sunak has doubled down on his support for the Rwanda policy
• He has said that ‘no option is off the table’ for him to control Channel crossings
• Mr Sunak was unable to give clear assurances that all of his plans to tackle illegal migration would be legal

Rishi Sunak has doubled down on his support for the Government’s Rwanda deportation policy – saying ‘no option is off the table’ to make it work if he becomes Prime Minister.

The former Chancellor used a pool broadcast interview to elaborate on how he would tackle Channel crossings in small boats as both he and leadership rival Liz Truss try to woo Conservative members.

Mr Sunak said: ‘I’ve said that we need to look at all creative solutions to make sure that we have the places we need to detain refugees and ensure that we can process them as quickly as possible.

‘And I’m prepared to look at novel solutions. Indeed, Scotland and other countries have also looked at this. We need to tackle this problem creatively because it is a big challenge.

The former Chancellor used a pool broadcast interview to elaborate on how he would tackle Channel crossings in small boats

‘And right now it’s not working as well as it should. As prime minister, I will fix that.’

Mr Sunak was unable to give clear assurances that all of his plans to tackle illegal migration would be legal.

On Sunday, the Tory leadership contender set out a range of plans designed to crack down on illegal migration, including an annual cap on the number of refugees coming to Britain.

But in a pooled broadcast interview, he was pressed on whether those plans would be legal.

‘What we do need to do is be very honest about the challenges that the ECHR, these European laws, have on our ability to grapple with this problem.

‘I’ve said that no options should be off the table. We have a new British Bill of Rights that’s being introduced into parliament that I believe will help solve the challenges.

Rishi Sunak said that ‘no option should be off the table’ to ensure that the Government’s controversial Rwanda asylum scheme works

‘And I’ve put some other further points in the plan today saying how we could do things differently from the European Convention to strengthen our ability to deport people who shouldn’t be here and protect our borders.

‘I want people to know this is a very serious issue. It is a priority for me. It’s a priority for the country.’

Rishi Sunak said that ‘no option should be off the table’ to ensure that the Government’s controversial Rwanda asylum scheme works.

In a pooled interview clip with broadcasters, he said: ‘We have always been a compassionate, tolerant and welcoming country. Indeed, I am the product of that and my family emigrated here, but it’s absolutely right that the system works fairly for all and people can’t break the rules.’

Source: Read Full Article