The interior minister has issued a “ministerial instruction” over the asylum plan in Rwanda, quashing concerns from his own officials, according to Sky News.
Ministerial Instructions are used when a senior official in a department has objected to the cost or feasibility of a spending plan.
A Home Office source said: “Home Office officials are clear that deterring illegal entry would create significant cost savings. However, such a deterrent effect cannot be quantified with certainty.
“It would be wrong to let a lack of accurate modeling delay a policy aimed at reducing illegal migration, saving lives and breaking the business model of smuggling gangs.”
The UK government is trying to crack down on Channel crossings by small boats and as part of the plans, the Home Office signed an agreement with Rwanda send migrants to this landlocked African country.
The Interior Ministry said on Thursday that the first people sent to Rwanda will be officially notified in the coming weeks, with the first flights taking place in the coming months.
The partnership would initially have cost £120million and Priti Patel told a press conference in Kigali on Thursday that the UK was making a “substantial investment” in Rwanda’s development.
What is a ministerial instruction?
The Ministerial Instructions have only been used 46 times since 2011, many of which were issued during the COVID-19 pandemic.
They have the effect of enjoining public servants to implement a policy despite the objection of the apolitical senior official of a service.
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This means that the minister becomes responsible for spending, rather than the public service.
Instructions were issued during the Eat out to help and the COVID-19 Rebound Loan Program.
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