On 22nd April 2024, the House of Lords debated Commons Reasons and Amendments to the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, and votes were held on further amendments, in which bishops took part:
On 17th April 2024, the House of Lords debated Commons reasons and amendments to the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill. Votes were held on further amendments to the bill, in which Bishops took part:
On 20th March 2024, the House of Lords debated Commons Reasons and Amendments to the Safety of Rwanda Bill. Votes were held on motions to the bill, in which Bishops took part:
On 6th March 2024, the House of Lords debated the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill in the final day of the report stage. Votes were held on amendments to the bill, in which bishops took part:
During a debate on the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration Bill on 4th March 2024, the Bishop of Manchester spoke in support of amendments 9 and 12 to the bill, tabled by Lord Anderson of Ipswich, which would allow the courts to take new factors into consideration when considering Rwanda’s safety in the future:
The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Anderson of Ipswich, for sponsoring Amendments 9 and 12, to which I have added my name. They take up matters that I and the noble Lord, Lord Carlile, raised in Committee.
Continue reading “Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill: Bishop of Manchester supports amendments on power of the courts”On 4th March 2024, the Archbishop of Canterbury spoke in a debate on the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, in support of a group of amendments seeking to ensure compliance with the rule of law in the application of the bill:
The Lord Archbishop of Canterbury: My Lords, at this stage of the debate on this group, we are looking at two distinct things. One is the question of whether Rwanda is safe. If, as the noble Lord just said, it is unquestionably safe, it seems to me that these amendments are not a problem because, at that point, the Secretary of State can easily say, “It’s safe”, and they will have evidence of that, for this and future Governments.
Continue reading “Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill: Archbishop of Canterbury supports amendments on rule of law”On 4th March 2024, the House of Lords debated the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill in the first day of the report stage. The Bishop of St Edmundsbury & Ipswich spoke in the debate, supporting amendments on assessing Rwanda’s safety, establishing right of return for asylum seekers after relocation, and protection for victims of modern slavery:
The Lord Bishop of St Edmundsbury & Ipswich: My Lords, I shall speak in favour of Amendments 1, 3 and 5 tabled by the noble Baroness, Lady Chakrabarti, to which I have added my name. I do not believe that we can enshrine in law a statement of fact without seeing and understanding the evidence that shows such a statement to be true, in particular when such a statement of fact is so contentious and for which the evidence may change. Ignoring for a second the strange absurdity of such declarations, we must also consider the real impact that this could have on the potentially vulnerable people whom the Government intend to send to Rwanda. As my most reverend friend the Archbishop of Canterbury, who is in his place, said at Second Reading,
Continue reading “Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration Bill): Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich supports amendments on modern slavery, right of return, and overall safety”On 14th February 2024, during a debate on the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, the Bishop of Bristol spoke in support of amendments 19, 21, 25 and 28 to the bill on behalf of the Bishop of Manchester, relating to the proper implementation of the Rwanda Treaty, and introducing further safeguards relating to verifying Rwanda’s safety:
The Lord Bishop of Bristol: My Lords, my right reverend friend the Bishop of Manchester regrets that he cannot be here today to speak to Amendments 19, 21, 25 and 28 in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Carlile of Berriew, to which he has added his name. I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Anderson of Ipswich, for setting out the case clearly, and I am particularly grateful to follow the noble Lord, Lord Clarke of Nottingham, as he has made the case so powerfully.
My right reverend friend and I are concerned, not as lawyers but as citizens, about the constitutional precedent the Bill sets. The role of the judiciary as distinct from the Government and Parliament must not be infringed. Parliament creates laws but judges and juries are responsible for the finding of facts. Where the Supreme Court has ruled that Rwanda is not safe, it is an abuse of Parliament’s powers, as we have just heard, for it to attempt to declare otherwise.
We are concerned that the Bill represents a dangerous step. The amendments in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Carlile, therefore attempt to preserve the important principle that facts should be considered by the courts. We must surely be able to take into account credible evidence that Rwanda is not a safe country.
Continue reading “Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill: Bishop of Bristol supports amendments related to implementation of UK-Rwanda Treaty”
The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 14th February 2024:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of relations between Rwanda and Burundi and the closure of the border between the two countries; and what steps they are taking to help prevent further escalation of tension in the region. [HL2070]
Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about growing tensions between Rwanda and Burundi”During a debate on the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill on 12th February 2024, the Bishop of Southwark spoke in favour of a group of amendments centred around ensuring that Rwanda not be considered safe until the full implementation of the UK-Rwanda treaty, querying when a new Rwandan Asylum bill required by the treaty would be published and made operational:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, I will speak in favour of this group, particularly Amendments 6, 14 and 20, but I wish to avoid the circularity, as the noble Baroness, Lady Chakrabarti, was saying, that has been inevitable on something so interconnected.
The Home Secretary has said that
“we will not operationalise this scheme until we are confident that the measures underpinning the treaty have been put in place; otherwise, the treaty is not credible”.
Continue reading “Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill: Bishop of Southwark queries timeline for legislation relating to Rwanda treaty”
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