Germany may utilise UK facilities for Rwanda plan

'A complete farce', says Tory leadership frontrunner Robert Jenrick as the prime minister vows to tackle smuggling gangs

- ARCHIE MITCHELL

Germany could use asylum facilities in Rwanda originally intended for the UK's aborted migration scheme, reports from Berlin have suggested. The country’s migration commissioner, Joachim Stamp, has suggested the EU could utilise existing asylum accommodation in the east African country, originally destined for migrants deported from Britain under the now-scrapped scheme.

Downing Street said it would not comment on the discussions between two foreign governments. But Tory leadership frontrunner and former immigration minister Robert Jenrick said the development was “a complete farce”. He told Sky News: “The British government created a scheme in Rwanda which is admired by other countries around the world. Many of our partners, potentially Germany, have looked at that and thought they might create a version of it in the years ahead.

“This new Labour government has scrapped the scheme, instead of strengthening it as I wanted, so it was the most robust deterrent, they scrapped it altogether. Now the very facilities we invested in may be taken up by countries like Germany who clearly are more determined to tackle this issue than this Labour government who seem as if they want open borders in the UK.”

But border security minister Dame Angela Eagle warned the Germans against pursuing what she dubbed “an expensive gimmick”. She told Sky News: “It was not workable, it was a gimmick, the last government spent £700m to get four people to voluntarily go to Rwanda and was gearing up to spend billions more.