Thousands of people left in limbo since plans to deport them to Rwanda were axed will now have their asylum claims processed in the UK, Labour has confirmed.
More than 5,000 asylum seekers were on an initial list drawn up by the previous government to be sent to Rwanda under a deal between the two countries.
One of the first acts of the Labour government was to scrap the Rwanda scheme, resulting in many of the 5,700 people the Kigali administration had agreed to accept having their claims processed in the UK asylum system. Some subsequently received decisions on their claims but it is estimated that thousands have remained in limbo.
While being forcibly removed to Rwanda is no longer an option, they received letters saying that although their asylum claims would be admitted to the UK, “if circumstances change or further information becomes available to us to suggest that inadmissibility action under these or other provisions is in fact appropriate we will notify you accordingly”.
Asylum seekers who received these letters were fearful that they could be removed to other countries, especially after rumours of government discussions about returns hubs in various countries including in the Balkans.
Labour’s failure to publish a policy confirming that everyone previously earmarked for Rwanda would now have their claims processed in the UK led to a legal challenge from the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI), which claimed that the uncertainty contained in the letters could worsen the trauma many asylum seekers had suffered in their home countries and on their journeys. It called on the government to publish a policy confirming that the claims of everyone previously on the Rwanda list would now be processed in the UK.
A court hearing was due to take place on Wednesday morning but hours before this the Home Office published new guidance stating that the department “has discontinued inadmissibility action and is committed to substantively considering the merits of the asylum claims”.
The group affected arrived in the UK between 1 January 2022 and 29 June 2023, many on small boats, and were issued with notices informing them that they may be removed to Rwanda.
Taher Gulamhussein, a solicitor at JCWI , welcomed the guidance published by the government. He said: “The prime minister said on his first day in office that the Conservative party’s Rwanda plan was a gimmick and that it was dead and buried. He then promised those migrants that their claims for asylum would finally be processed in the UK.
“Shortly after that he went back on his word and told those people that he reserved the right to consider removing them to another third country after all. We challenged that practice. We are pleased that more than an estimated 2,000 of those migrants left in limbo and uncertainty can finally rest that their asylum claims will only be processed in the UK.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “The home secretary has been clear that the costly migration and economic development partnership with Rwanda wasted taxpayer money and should not continue. That is why we are bringing the partnership to an end and have redeployed resources to instead surge returns activity of those with no right to be here, with 24,000 returned since July.”
