Last week we celebrated St. George’s Day, our national day where we take time to celebrate our history, our heritage, and our character; reflect on what it means to be English and be proud of being a part of our great Union. Whatever you did to celebrate St George’s Day, I hope you enjoyed it.
Turning to Parliament, last week we finally passed the Safety of Rwanda Bill, which also received Royal Assent to become an Act of Parliament.
We have made good progress stopping the boats – the number of small boat arrivals fell by a third in 2023. But that is not enough.
For as long as this route is viable, people will keep coming.
This is why Rwanda matters. The only way to stop the boats is to remove the incentive to come – by making clear that if you come here illegally, you will not be allowed to stay.
After months of delay from Labour and their members in the House of Lords – we have passed the Safety of Rwanda Act.
This means that – after two years – we can start the process to send the first flights of illegal migrants to Rwanda and deter people from coming illegally in the first place.
There will be no further delays. We will do the final training of caseworkers, conduct the case-file reviews and, and now the Act has received Royal Assent, we will detain the first cohort of migrants for removal. We will send the first flight to Rwanda in 10-12 weeks, with multiple flights every month over the summer and beyond until the boats are stopped.
This is one of the most complex operational endeavours carried out by the Home Office, but we are ready and plans are in place.
It should be this country and your government who decides who comes here, not criminal gangs.
That’s why we will do whatever it takes to get flights off and stop the boats.
The recent news of deaths in the English Channel demonstrates just how important this Bill is. We must stop people making these perilous journeys. We must stop the boats to save lives and protect our borders.
As always, if you require my help with anything at all, please do not hesitate to contact me via e-mail at [email protected] or by telephone on 01543 877 142.
