Nigel Farage has been consistently sceptical about the workability of Rishi Sunak’s deportation plan.
Nigel Farage says he has “changed his mind” about the timing of this year’s general election after Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda Bill was finally ratified by Parliament.
But the former Brexit Party leader challenged the Prime Minister’s assertion that the first flights taking failed asylum seekers to the East African country will take off within 12 weeks, insisting: “It isn’t going to happen.”
Mr Farage, speaking on GB News, on which he is now a presenter, was commenting after last night’s tense stand-off between the Commons and the Lords.
Mr Farage made the comments during a talk on GB News, where he is currently a presenter, following last night’s tense standoff between the House of Commons and the Lords.
Mr Sunak’s deportation plan is set to take effect after his colleagues end their longstanding opposition to the controversial policy.
The non-elected House is deadlocked after MPs reject a request that Rwanda should not be considered safe until the Minister of Foreign Affairs issues a statement to this effect in Parliament after consultation with an independent monitoring body. put an end to the situation.
The former lawmaker went on to say: “What he didn’t tell you is that even if we ignore the European Court of Human Rights, which I think is very, very unlikely, we actually You still have something.” The Rights Act of 1998 contained the very terms used by our court in Strasbourg.
“This idea that these planes are going to go to Rwanda in 10 to 12 weeks, no matter what happens,” people believe me, but it’s not going to happen.
“And for the last four years I’ve always been right about that.”
Mr Farage apologized for sounding “a bit cocky” and added: I predicted a crisis. I told all of Rwanda that it’s not going to work.”
Mr Farage said Mr Sunak’s speech a few hours earlier had convinced him that elections would be held sooner rather than later. Conservative MP Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg agreed, telling the former Ukip leader that “mood music is moving towards the summer election”.
Explaining his reasons, Mr Farage said: “Today the Prime Minister said ‘no foreign court can stop these flights from being stopped’.”
“This is a very brave statement from the British Prime Minister. He is basically saying that whatever the Strasbourg court says, we will ignore it.”
“But he…
“So I know that half of my party, half of my MPs, will be appalled by this because they think the European Court of Human Rights is a good thing.
If you had asked me first thing this morning before this speech whether there would be a summer election instead of a fall election, I would have said this. I would say,Well, I think two-thirds are fall elections, one-third are fall elections.” That’s a fall election, a summer election.”
Regarding the May 2 local elections, Mr Farage said: Regardless of how well or badly the Conservatives do in next week’s election, I can currently say there is a two-thirds chance of a general election being held in late June or early July.
“Frankly, I think there will be an early election because we can’t just stop the boats and send people to Rwanda and keep raising the stakes to keep failing.
“He must know, his advisers must know, that all the while the Human Rights Act is there in law there will be lawyers on behalf of people who are going to be deported, who will go to the courts and British judges will find in their favour and not allow them to go to Rwanda.
“So rather than wait, for what seems to be his flagship policy to disintegrate, he’ll call a general election before making promises that he can’t deliver. That’s my thought.”
Commenting after passage of the legislation, which is now awaiting Royal Assent, Mr Sunak said: “The passing of this legislation will allow us to do that and make it very clear that if you come here illegally, you will not be able to stay.
“Our focus is to now get flights off the ground, and I am clear that nothing will stand in our way of doing that and saving lives.”
French media is today reporting that at least five people died overnight attempting to cross the English Channel is a flimsy dinghy after setting sail from Wimereux, close to Calais.