Rishi Sunak had serious doubts about the main refugee camps that were promoted by number 10, according to documents seen by the BBC.
These suggest that he wanted to reduce the original plans from the prime minister’s office.
They also indicate that Sunak was not sure that the relocation of migrants would prevent the flow of people navigating the English Channel in small boats.
They also suggest that he was reluctant to finance reception centers that would house migrants, preferring to use hotels or private housing because “hotels are cheaper.”
As prime minister, under pressure from his party, Sunak named the Rwanda plan one of his top priorities.
The plan to relocate some asylum seekers to Rwanda for processing and eventual relocation was first announced by then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson in April 2022.
Sunak – who became prime minister in October 2022 – was Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Rwanda policy was announced.
The implementation has been repeatedly postponed due to legal challenges and no asylum seekers have been relocated from the UK to date.
The documents from number 10 offices were prepared in March 2022, shortly before the deal with Rwanda to handle the migrants was signed.
They indicate that Sunak was concerned about the cost of relocating asylum seekers to the African country and wanted to initially limit the numbers.
They indicated that the “chancellor wants to start with smaller volumes, 500 instead of 1,500 in the first year, and 3,000 instead of 5,000 in the second and third years.”
The documents describe a significant divergence of opinion between number 10 and 11 Downing Street about the effectiveness of the proposed plan, stating that the chancellor believes that “the deterrent won’t work.”
Sunak is also depicted as being skeptical about financing so-called “Greek-style reception centers”, places where migrants could be accommodated, instead of being housed in hotels, which were said to be costing £3.5 million a day at that time.
The documents also reveal that number 10 suggested that Sunak should be invited to “consider his popularity with the base” if he was reluctant to sign up for changes to the immigration system, including the Rwanda plan.
Despite the proposal being declared illegal by the UK Supreme Court, the prime minister has pledged to change the law so that flights can take off to Rwanda.
However, the revelations about his doubts regarding the plan are likely to be embarrassing, especially as some MPs from the right wing of his party have urged him to go further to achieve his goal of stopping migrants from crossing the Channel, potentially leading to the European Convention on Human Rights.
A source close to the prime minister told the BBC: “The prime minister has always fully supported the principle of the plan as a deterrent.
“As the chancellor, it was his responsibility to ensure that it was implemented and that taxpayer money was spent appropriately.”
A government source said: “As chancellor, Rishi funded the Rwanda plan and made it the cornerstone of his 10-point plan the month after becoming prime minister.
“Now he is promoting the Rwanda Bill following the Supreme Court ruling to get flights to Rwanda off the ground. He is the first prime minister ever to oversee a reduction in small boat crossings, which fell by 36% last year.”
In a statement, Labour MP and shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said: “This shows how completely fraudulent the Tories’ Rwanda plan is and how weak Rishi Sunak has become.
“The prime minister knew the plan was incredibly expensive and would not work, and resisted it as long as he was Chancellor. But he is so weak that he now agreed to write checks to Rwanda for £400m without sending a single person there in a desperate attempt to shore up his leadership.
“Whether it be on Rwanda or hotel use, the Tories are always going for tricks rather than taking control.
“It is time to give up this sorry charade and adopt Labour’s plan to tackle the criminal smuggling gangs, negotiate a new security agreement with Europe to better protect our borders, and create a new repatriation unit to ensure that those who have no right to be in the UK are expelled promptly.”
¿Cuál es el plan de asilo de Rwanda?
En el marco del ensayo quinquenal, a algunos solicitantes de asilo que lleguen al Reino Unido se les enviaría a Rwanda para ser procesados.
A su llegada, podrían obtener el estatus de refugiado y quedarse. De lo contrario, podrían solicitar establecerse allí por otras razones, o buscar asilo en otro “país tercero seguro”.
El gobierno dijo que “cualquier persona que entre ilegalmente al Reino Unido” después del 1 de enero de 2022 podría ser enviada allí, sin límite en el número.
Sin embargo, hasta ahora, ningún solicitante de asilo ha sido enviado.
El primer vuelo estaba programado para junio de 2022, pero fue cancelado tras desafíos legales.
El gobierno insiste en que la política disuadiría a las personas de llegar al Reino Unido a través de “métodos ilegales, peligrosos o innecesarios”, como en pequeños botes a través del Canal de la Mancha.
En enero de 2023, Sunak dijo que “detener los botes” era una de sus principales prioridades.
El mes pasado, se comprometió a “terminar el trabajo” de revivir el plan tras la renuncia del ministro de Inmigración, Robert Jenrick, quien dimitió por la política revisada del gobierno, diciendo que creía que estaba condenada al fracaso.