STORY
The UK will not have to pay Rwanda tens of millions of pounds following the cancellation of the previous Government’s asylum partnership, after the Permanent Court of Arbitration rejected Rwanda’s financial claims. The scheme, originally designed to send some asylum seekers arriving in the UK to Rwanda, was scrapped by Sir Keir Starmer’s Government after Labour entered office in 2024.
Rwanda had argued that Britain should still make further payments under the agreement, including two annual payments of £50 million and additional compensation. The Hague-based arbitration body rejected the claims, finding that the UK was not liable for the sums being pursued.
The ruling gives ministers a political boost on an issue that has remained central to the immigration debate. The Government has argued that the Rwanda policy was expensive, ineffective and legally flawed, while opposition figures have continued to attack Labour over small boat crossings and its wider asylum strategy.