What the ERG verdict on the Rwanda bill means for Sunak

It’s back to Brexit in parliament this week as Rishi Sunak puts his plan B to salvage the government’s flagship Rwanda scheme to a vote in the Commons. The Safety of Rwanda Bill – which declares that Rwanda is a safe place to send illegal migrants and states that international laws including the Human Rights Convention will have no effect – has its second reading tomorrow. The last time a government bill was defeated at a similar stage was in 1986 on Sunday trading.

The reason defeat is viewed as a possibility is that both the left and right of the party have issues with the policy: the right says it does not go far enough while the left says it goes too far. This lunchtime, the European Research Group met to discuss their options after bringing back their Brexit era so-called ‘star chamber’ of legal experts to assess the proposed bill.