UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak says that the number of migrants crossing illegally into the UK from Europe has decreased by one-third.
According to Mr Sunak “People may not know this, but this year because of all the things that we’ve done, the number of illegal migrants crossing to the UK is down by a third.
He also stated his determination to resurrect the UK government’s stalled plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda without violating international law.
Many legal experts said that was wishful thinking, and critics urged the government to abandon a plan that they claim is costing millions of dollars and harming Britain’s international reputation.
The United Kingdom Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that the government’s plan is invalid because Rwanda is not a safe country to send migrants to.
Despite the unanimous decision of the justices, the British government has reinforced the policy, claiming that it will deter people from all over the world from making perilous journeys across the English Channel in small boats.
Sunak said he’s negotiating a treaty with the Rwandan government to close loopholes in the plan, including a block on Rwanda sending migrants home.
The government says once that risk has been removed, it will pass a law through Parliament declaring that Rwanda is a safe country.
It has been more than a year and a half since the U.K. struck a deal with Rwanda to send migrants who arrive in the U.K. as stowaways or in boats to the East African country, where their asylum claims would be processed and, if successful, they would stay.
Britain says that will deter people from making the journey and break the business model of people-smuggling gangs.
A large portion of Europe and the United States are grappling with how to best handle the influx of migrants fleeing oppression, war, and violence as well as the disastrous droughts and floods brought on by global warming.
Thousands of migrants from all over the world travel to northern France every year in the hopes of attempting to cross the English Channel, even though Britain receives fewer asylum applications than nations like Italy, France, or Germany.
So far this year, over 27,300 people have done that.
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