Watch: Rwanda bill returns to House of Lords after MPs reject amendments

Watch as Rishi Sunak’s controversial Rwanda asylum bill returned to House of Lords on Tuesday (16 April) after MPs rejected a series of amendments.

The parliamentary “ping-pong” over the Government’s Rwanda scheme continued as peers once again debated legislation declaring the east African nation safe for refugees.

The Government successfully overturned six House of Lords amendments on Monday as MPs voted to return the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill to its original form two years after the UK first announced its deal with Rwanda.

The legislation seeks to compel judges to regard Rwanda as safe in a bid to clear the way to send asylum seekers who cross the Channel in small boats on a one-way flight to the country.

The Bill returned to the House of Lords, where the unelected chamber again pressed demands for revisions to the bill despite MPs overturning previous changes.

The Lords insisted on an amendment to restore the jurisdiction of domestic courts in relation to the safety of Rwanda and enable them to intervene.

The legislation will only receive royal assent and become law once both Houses have agreed on its final wording in a process known as parliamentary ping-pong.

Among the amendments overturned by MPs on Monday were proposals to ensure the Bill has “due regard” for domestic and international law and that Rwanda is only regarded as safe for as long as the provisions of the UK’s treaty with that country are in place.