News of the accelerated plan comes as PM Rishi Sunak today promises Sunday Express readers he will honour his promise to the British people and \u201cfinish the job and stop the boats\u201d.<\/p>\n
We can reveal preparations are underway at the heart of Govern-ment to ensure the controversial plan to remove people who have come to the UK in small boats is not stopped by European judges.<\/p>\n
Tory MPs say getting the flights off the ground by the new year would represent a triumph for Mr Sunak and strike a major blow against the people smugglers. A top Gov\u00ad\u00adernment source said if Britain\u2019s Sup\u00ad\u00adreme Court gives the flights the green light they could take off in a \u201cmatter of weeks\u201d.<\/p>\n
A leading supporter of the scheme said that if the first plane leaves before Christ-mas this would be<\/p>\n
a \u201cvictory for every law-abiding citizen in the country\u201d.<\/p>\n
Crunch hearings will begin tomorrow at the Supreme Court into whether the plan to send \u00adasylum seekers to the African state is lawful.<\/p>\n
Judges are not expected to deliver their verdict until mid-November but there are hopes the process can be accelerated.<\/p>\n
Supporters of the Rwanda scheme say it will act as a vital \u201cdeterrent\u201d and smash the business model of people smugglers.<\/p>\n
It is hoped that if people know they will not be able to remain<\/p>\n
in the UK they will not get on board dinghies for the dangerous journey across the Channel.<\/p>\n
The Prime Minister has made stopping the boats one of his<\/p>\n
five priorities for Government. He said: \u201cSunday Exp-ress readers will agree, it should be the democratically elected government of this country which decides who comes here, not the criminal gangs \u2013 so that\u2019s what we are going to deliver for the British people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Sunak last week urged European leaders at a \u00adsummit in Spain to work together to tackle the migrant crisis, warning that the present situation is \u201cimmoral and unsustainable\u201d.<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cBritain is leading the world in tackling illegal migration. We took the bold step to speak out about the scale of<\/p>\n
the problem and we are taking the radical action to tackle it.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow other countries are following our lead \u2013 including looking at our Rwanda plan.\u201d<\/p>\n
Intense work is going on in Whitehall to make sure European judges are not able to stop the planes leaving. The first flight due to depart for Rwanda was grounded in June last year following an injunction from the European Court of Human Rights.<\/p>\n
Preparations are underway to ensure this cannot happen again.<\/p>\n
Justice Secretary Alex Chalk is working with the Prime Minister on the details of the plan and steps have been taken to ensure there are enough judges to hear pre-flight appeals.<\/p>\n
A senior source said: \u201cOur robust system is deliberately designed to stand up to<\/p>\n
all legal scrutiny, to ensure we can get the flights off the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n
Migrants will be able to appeal first to the Home Office and then to the \u201cupper tribunal\u201d. Sources are confident that if they can show migrants have received legal aid and had their cases heard by \u201cworld class British judges\u201d this will reduce the chances of the Strasbourg Court halting planes.<\/p>\n
The early take-off of flights would win the PM loud cheers on the Tory backbenches.<\/p>\n
Conservative MP Marco Longhi said: \u201cGetting Rwanda flights to take off before Christmas would be a victory for every law-abiding citizen in the country and a<\/p>\n
decisive blow against the people smugglers and their foul criminal trade. This would show that<\/p>\n
a democratically elected government has delivered on the wishes of the people and that nobody \u2013 no foreign judge, crafty lawyer or shameless opportunist \u2013 can stand in its way.<\/p>\n
\u201cFlights before Christmas would give everyone a clear reason to vote Conservative in 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Sunak told the Sunday Exp-ress: \u201cLast week I led a meeting with Italy\u2019s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to agree a plan with Euro-<\/p>\n
pean leaders to tackle the issue.<\/p>\n
\u201cTogether we are determined to break the business model of the criminal gangs who profit from other people\u2019s misery, and smash every link in their supply chain.<\/p>\n
\u201cI promised the British people that I would stop the boats.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome said it couldn\u2019t be done. But this year the numbers are down by a fifth. That\u2019s the first time they have gone down \u2013 while they have risen in Europe.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s because of the action we have taken. So we will keep<\/p>\n
working, at home and with international partners, to finish the job and stop the boats.\u201d<\/p>\n
We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info<\/p>\n
Source: Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"