The plans of his conservative predecessor Rishi Sunak were “dead and buried” and were merely symbolic politics, Starmer said in Downing Street in London. The head of the social democratic Labour Party had already announced during the election campaign that he would stop the Rwanda programme.
Sunak wanted to deport people who came to the UK without the necessary papers to the East African country, regardless of their origin. They were to apply for asylum in Rwanda; a return to the UK was out of the question. Opponents of the plan saw this as a breach of international obligations.
Every year, tens of thousands of people reach the British coast irregularly across the English Channel, mostly in small boats. Accommodation in hotels and other accommodation costs taxpayers billions. Sunak’s conservative government relied on the Rwanda plan to deter migrants. Recently, however, the number of arrivals has risen once more. The deal with Rwandan President Paul Kagame, whom critics accuse of human rights violations, has so far cost British taxpayers several hundred million pounds. In return, no migrant has been deported to East Africa once morest their will.
After his victory in the parliamentary election, Starmer had previously chaired his first cabinet meeting. “We have a lot of work to do, so let’s get started,” said the social democratic head of government on Saturday in his official residence in London’s Downing Street. Labour had clearly won the vote on Thursday and replaced the Conservatives following 14 years in power.
Nehammer congratulated on the election victory
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP), who had received Sunak before the election defeat and supported his Rwanda plans, congratulated Starmer on his election victory on Saturday. “I look forward to working together and further strengthening the already close relations between our two countries,” the Chancellor said on X.
This article was updated at 4:53 p.m.
