There is no evidence for the government’s claim that deportations will ‘stop the boats’ The capitulation of the House of Lords over the government’s Rwanda bill was predictable – even if some opponents had hoped against hope that peers might force a climbdown. As of now, UK law states that Rwanda is a “safe country”, making it possible for ministers to send asylum seekers there. The shameful course of action embarked on late last year, after the supreme court ruled the deportation policy unlawful, has thus concluded. Two years after Boris Johnson first announced the plan, Rishi Sunak is set to ..read more

Union threatens ministers with legal action amid fears staff could be obliged to breach civil service code and international law UK politics – latest updates Rishi Sunak has said he is confident Home Office staff will enact the Rwanda deportation scheme, despite fears that could put them in breach of international law. The FDA, the union for senior civil servants, has threatened ministers with legal action if they are forced to implement the government’s Rwanda deportation bill ..read more

Johnny Timpson says he wants to ‘take a stand’ after revelations thousands of carers are being forced to pay huge fines One of Rishi Sunak’s dementia advisers has resigned over the government’s approach towards unpaid carers, describing the prosecutions of vulnerable people as “beyond the pale”. Johnny Timpson, who advised No 10 on its dementia strategy, said he wanted to “take a stand” after the Guardian revealed that tens of thousands of unpaid carers were being fined huge sums and in some cases prosecuted for minor infringements of earnings rules ..read more

The man who reported Labour’s deputy to the police can’t even say what he was complaining about. Meanwhile, there’s no getting away from the Conservatives’ scandals I went past parliament last week and saw Angela Rayner. She is one of those politicians you couldn’t miss anyway, but she was also dressed in primary colours and silver shoes, the purest “up yours” outfit imaginable. It was a couple of hours after a toe-curling exchange on Sky News in which the Conservative MP James Daly, who reported Rayner to Greater Manchester police, was asked by two anchors and Labour’s Chris Bryant what his a ..read more

We seek peace in Gaza, Ukraine, Yemen, Sudan, the DRC and elsewhere, but we’re ignored. History will damn the warmongers “The protagonists of 1914 were sleepwalkers, watchful but unseeing, haunted by dreams, yet blind to the reality of the horror they were about to bring into the world.” Christopher Clark’s The Sleepwalkers retells the story of the outbreak of the first world war. Mapping a multipolar world enthralled by imperialism and paranoia, Clark refuses to pin the blame on a single power. Instead, he explains how political leaders narrowed the prospects for peace one misstep at a time ..read more

Claire O’Neill, a former climate minister, says PM’s move was to ‘try and create political division and dividing lines’ The UK government’s decision to weaken some of its climate commitments was a “retrograde step” that will set back vital cross-party action to cut carbon emissions, Claire O’Neill, a former Conservative climate minister, has said. O’Neill, who was known as Claire Perry when she served as a minister under David Cameron and Theresa May, said the rolling back of emission reduction efforts by Rishi Sunak appeared to be a ploy for political advantage ..read more

International concern over new law increases as UN high commissioner for refugees says it marks ‘step away from UK’s tradition of providing refuge’ Five people have reportedly died in an attempt to cross the Channel near the town of Wimereux, south of Calais, Jamie Grierson reports. In response to the reports, James Cleverly, the home secretary, said: These tragedies have to stop. I will not accept a status quo which costs so many lives. This government is doing everything we can to end this trade, stop the boats and ultimately break the business model of the evil people smuggling gangs, so th ..read more

Commissioner expresses grave concern after Rishi Sunak’s asylum policy passes parliamentary stages The Council of Europe’s human rights watchdog has condemned Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda scheme, saying it raises “major issues about the human rights of asylum seekers and the rule of law”. The body’s human rights commissioner, Michael O’Flaherty, said the bill, expected to be signed into law on Tuesday after passing its parliamentary stages on Monday night, was a grave concern and should not be used to remove asylum seekers or infringe on judges’ independence ..read more

After last night’s Commons vote, they want a ‘proof of concept’ journey to get the tawdry policy back on track. But it’s too flawed for that There will be a sigh of relief in No 10 with the passing of the Rwanda bill, as well as a degree of frustration. Having to steward another migration bill through parliament was not part of the government’s plan. With the Rwanda bill passing on to the statute book, overriding the supreme court judgment that Rwanda is not a safe country to which to send people seeking sanctuary, the government now hopes it can finally get on with locking up and then removin ..read more

Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda deportation bill will become law after peers eventually backed down on amending it, opening the way for legal battles over the potential removal of dozens of people seeking asylum. Sunak has put the bill, which would deport asylum seekers who arrive in the UK by irregular means to Kigali, at the centre of his attempts to stop small boats crossing the Channel ..read more