For a painful 16 months, people who have already been forced to flee unimaginable horror and trauma have had to live under the terrifying threat of being sent thousands of miles away.
Responding to the Supreme Court ruling that the government’s Rwanda policy is unlawful, Halima Begum, CEO of ActionAid UK, says:
“Today we breathe a huge sigh of relief as this cruel and unworkable plan receives the ultimate judgment it deserves. Since its very inception, legal experts and campaigners have been absolutely clear that this inhumane policy is incompatible with the UK’s human rights obligations. The Supreme Court ruling, which follows the Court of Appeal judgment earlier this year, sees British values of compassion and dignity and the countless refugees with valid asylum claims, vindicated.
“For a painful 16 months, people who have already been forced to flee unimaginable horror and trauma have had to live under the terrifying threat of being sent thousands of miles away, when all they wanted was the opportunity to rebuild their lives in safety and peace here in the UK. What a pity the government has wasted £140m on this doomed plan to outsource our country’s responsibilities to help those in need of sanctuary.
“While we all feel vindicated by today’s decision, it cannot undo in one stroke the bitterness and division caused by successive home secretaries in recent years. We are aware that legislative moves may be afoot for the government to restructure its Rwanda plan. For now, we can only hope that today’s decision will bring an end to all cruel deterrence schemes and an end to the hostile environment still faced by so many migrants.”
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Contact the ActionAid press office on uk.media@actionaid.org or on 07753 973 486.
Dr Halima Begum, CEO of ActionAid UK, is available for interview
About ActionAid
ActionAid is a global federation working with more than 41 million people living in more than 71 of the world’s poorest countries. We want to see a just, fair, and sustainable world, in which everybody enjoys the right to a life of dignity, and freedom from poverty and oppression. We work to achieve social justice and gender equality and to eradicate poverty.