Rishi Sunak, Liz Truss promise expansion of 'cruel' Rwanda asylum plan

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As they compete for Conservative members' votes in the party leadership race, Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss have pledged to dramatically expand the Rwanda scheme for removing asylum seekers.

Both are appealing to the party's right-wing members with pledges on immigration that are deemed cruel by human rights organizations.

Sunak said he would do "whatever it takes" to get the stalled Rwanda plan "off the ground and operating at scale," as part of a pledge to pursue more "migration partnerships" with other countries.

Other commitments in the former chancellor's 10-point plan include capping the number of refugees accepted each year, ending the use of hotels to house migrants while their requests to remain in the UK are processed, and withholding aid money from countries that refuse to take back failed asylum seekers and criminals.

Sunak also took a veiled shot at Boris Johnson's weekend declaration that his premiership had achieved the key Brexit goal of regaining control of the UK's borders.

In an article for the Sunday Express, Johnson stated that "we took back control of our borders" and declared victory on his 2019 pledge to "get the job done" of delivering Brexit, adding, "That's exactly what I did."

Sunak, on the other hand, slammed the assessment, saying in a new social media video posted Sunday morning that "we do not have control of our borders" and that immigration should be legal, orderly, and controlled, but that "at the moment, it's none of those things."

Meanwhile, Truss stated that she is "determined to see the Rwanda policy through to completion, as well as exploring other countries where we can work on similar partnerships."

She vowed not to "cower" in front of the European Convention on Human Rights, which last month blocked the first flight of migrants to Rwanda, and to reform Britain's relationship with the court "so it works better."

While she is a Brexit supporter who voted to remain in the 2016 EU referendum, the foreign secretary is attempting to position herself as Johnson's true heir who will complete the job of overhauling immigration policy.

Truss vowed that Frontline Border Force capacity would be increased by 20% if she became Prime Minister.

“I’ll make sure we have the right levels of force and protection at our borders,” Truss added.

Human rights organizations have expressed concern about the immigration plans. "This demonstrates that the heat of campaigning leads to bad policy," said Oxfam's Sam Nadel. "If the former chancellor wins, he will be more than just a party leader; he will also be prime minister and a world leader.

“To meet a world in desperate crisis – facing climate change, famine and conflict – with cruel policies such as these would not live up to the role. We need more aid and safe and legal routes to the UK.”

Following Johnson's bid to save his administration in recent months with "Operation Red Meat," which saw the government pursue controversial policies designed to appeal directly to the Conservative base, the leadership contenders are likely to employ a similar tactic in the coming month.

They have only six weeks to persuade the more than 160,000 Conservative members who will vote on Britain's next prime minister, with the winner announced on September 5th.

Truss appears to be the clear favorite among party members, but Sunak has cast himself as the underdog, claiming that "forces that be" in the party wanted his opponent to win.