I know, why don't we send them all to Rwanda?

[Weighnow]

Does anyone else think this sounds like a suggestion someone made as a joke, to liven up a dull or fraught meeting and somehow, someone decided to run with it?

I wouldn't put it past them. Bit of a sick joke.

Are you not aware that other countries around the world already use this method of deterrent?

I'm not actually in favour of it but its a policy used by countries such as Australia which has far more robust immigration rules than the UK

The policy emerged under Boris Johnson's short-lived premiership, but do we know who was the brainchild behind the idea - have they owned it?

As another poster said, it’s not something specific to UK. They probably looked at models used by other countries and decided to give it a go. I’m not saying I agree, but you make out it’s something that could only be a joke?

Maybe they can round up all the benefits claimants and ship them off too? Two birds, one stone

My money is on Rees Mogg

I think it's a great idea. Ship the entire tory party out there to become street cleaners in Rwanda. What better use could there be for their skill set?

With Rwanda being such a wonderful place according to the tories what really surprises me is that none of them seem to holiday there or have it as one of their second or third homes.

I wouldn’t be looking to following Australia on immigration policies.

Just because another country does it, it doesnt mean it cant be considered a joke

As others have said, how come Rwanda is not a top class holiday desitination? Or any sort of holiday destination

What @soupfiend said.

Rwanda is beautiful. It's the safest country in Africa, currently developing and it needs people. I'm an immigrant here (UK), I came here at 18 to study and have stayed for nearly 30 years, and I'm happy here, but it wouldn't be my first choice now.

I appreciate that this government is unlikely to carry out this policy out of compassion, but another country needs workers, it can offer a welcome and safety to displaced people, and your government wants to help them. I think some criticism comes from an assumption that the UK is the best place in the world to live, and I'm not sure that it is now.

@SidekickSylvia It is interesting to hear your perspective. Why wouldn’t it be your first choice now?

There's a reason The Thick of It isn't on any more. Real life policy has gone far beyond satire. It would be nice to have some dreary 'quiet bat people' instead.

I'm pretty sure they got the idea from Denmark who have not sent a single person to Rwanda either! Denmark: Plans to send asylum-seekers to Rwanda “unconscionable and potentially unlawful” - Amnesty International

That would be all the unpaid carers gone then wouldn't it.

What is the alternative for all these 1000s of young men in their 20s, unless nobody has noticed, we have a massive homeless problem already?

You know they've lost the plot when they think it's a good idea to commit so much money and effort to a policy that sounds good (to some) on the front page of the Daily Mail, but is totally ineffective at reducing numbers or addressing the underlying issues. It's slight of hand to distract attention from the fact that the current crisis at the border was a direct result of Brexit and our exit from the returns agreement that allowed us to send people back to the first EU country of entry into the bloc. Now we are just conveniently positioned for the EU to wave them through and turn a blind eye along the coast.

@Blackcats7 , it doesn’t need to be a ‘Wonderful Place’. It just needs to be a safe place which can offer a new life to those who have come here illegally and cannot be returned to where they’ve come from. More people have drowned today, we must stop the vile trade of the traffickers.

Rwanda deserves better than that.

we went to Rwanda on honeymoon. It’s an absolutely beautiful country, and we trekked into the jungle to see gorillas.

I don’t agree with the policy but dislike this sneering at the nation like it’s third world. It’s very much developing.

I think it’s a good idea in terms of acting as a deterrent. Which is really what we want - to stop people taking these risks in the first place. The BBC has just flashed that a child is among the latest drowned.

Whether it’ll work is another question but worth a try as all other solutions seem to have failed.

Doubt if a single flight will ever take off. The government struggle enough to find charters for regular deportation flights, no charter provider is going to touch this, it would be commercial suicide.

I think the shock at the choice is probably because the only other time it's been in the news was for the genocide, which wasn't that long ago. Things have changed but there must still be a legacy of that.

That and the fact that's it's so far away from where the people hold to be.

The Supreme Court decided literally a few months ago that Rwanda is not a safe country and that the policy is unlawful. This legislation is to get around that decision. We used to be a country that cared about the rule of law, but not any more. It makes me ashamed that we have lost our way / moral compass.