Rwanda bill - live: Sunak doubles down on refusal to help Afghan heroes as no guarantee of fights by spring
Commons leader confirms Rwanda bill will return to the House of Commons on Monday
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Rishi Sunak has doubled down on his refusal to exempt Afghan heroes who served with British forces from being deported to Rwanda.
A No 10 spokesman said on Wednesday that the government would not be making any concessions on the Rwanda bill after the House of Lords last night voted in favour of the move.
The defiant upper chamber refused to cave to ministers’ demands and sent the flagship Rwanda plan back to the Commons.
Peers are also demanding the set up of a monitoring committee to assess whether Rwanda is safe before the government sends asylum seekers there.
Downing Street also on Thursday was unable to recommit to the prime minister’s pledge to get flights to Rwanda off the ground by the spring.
The spokesman said: “I’m not going to get ahead of the bill passing, which obviously we’ve seen again last night has continued to be held up.
“We’re working at pace to ensure these flights leave as soon as possible. It’s now incumbent on the Lords to pass this Bill such that we can trigger the final planning phases and ultimately stop the boats.”
Starmer and Sunak will clash at PMQs in a few minutes.
We’ll have all the action as it happens.
Stay tuned for all the latest updates. Watch it live here.
Right-wing National Conservatism Conference to resume after being shut down by Brussels police
The right-wing National Conservatism Conference will be free to meet today for its second day of programming without further interference from the police, the Belgium high court has ruled.
The Conseil d’État, the highest court in Belgium relating to issues of public administration, said the conference should be allowed to resume today after it was closed down by the police on Tuesday following an order by the local mayor.
Full report:
National Conservatism Conference to resume after being shut down by Brussels police
Belgium authorities shut down the event attended by Nigel Farage and Suella Braverman following an order from the local mayor
How did your MP vote on government’s smoking ban?
MPs voted 383 to 67, majority 316, to give the Tobacco and Vapes Bill a second reading.
The prime minister relied on Labour votes to see off opponents on his own benches, led by the former PM Liz Truss.
Here’s how all MPs voted:
How did my MP vote on the smoking bill?
MPs voted 383 to 67, to give the Tobacco and Vapes Bill a second reading
Fears interest rate cuts will be delayed after inflation falls less than expected
UK inflation slowed less than expected in March, leading economists and traders to be cautious about possible interest rate cuts in the summer.
The figures released by the ONS on Wednesday morning showed that inflation was 3.2 per cent in March, slightly higher than the 3.1 per cent predicted by economists.
Full report:
UK inflation falls less than expected to 3.2% in March
This is the lowest level inflation has been at since September 2021
Sunak and Starmer to face off at PMQs
Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer are set to clash at the first session of PMQs since MPs returned to parliament following the Easter break.
The prime minister and Labour leader face off after the government’s smoking ban for those born after 2009 cleared its first hurdle and as the Rwanda bill returns to the Commons.
We’ll bring you live updates from the session - you’ll also be able to watch it live on our YouTube channel (link to follow).
The hounding of Angela Rayner is an outrageous declaration of class war
Labour’s deputy leader is northern, working class and a strong woman – so obviously Tories and the Conservative press are out to bring her down ahead of a general election where she will be a major asset on the doorstep, says John Rentoul.
Read John’s piece in full here.
Minister confident Rwanda flights will take off in spring
Ministers are confident deportation flights to Rwanda will take off this spring, despite the legislation underpinning the plan remaining in parliamentary deadlock.
Treasury minister Laura Trott said there were “many definitions of spring” when pressed about a timeline for getting planes off the runway.
Ms Trott told Sky News: “We will be ready for flights to take off in the spring when the legislation passes.”
She added: “I think there are lots of definitions of spring but we are hoping to get them up and running as quickly as possible.”
Watch: Nigel Farage says ‘big political decision’ to be announced when quizzed on joining Conservative Party
Nigel Farage said he is going to make a big political decision within the “next few weeks” after he was quizzed on whether he would join the Conservative Party.
Mr Farage was quizzed on his political future after Liz Truss said she would like to see him “join the party”.
Appearing on Good Morning Britain on Wednesday (17 April), Ed Balls quizzed Mr Farage about his future plans.
He said: “In terms of what i may or may not do, I simply haven’t decided, but I notice Reform is getting stronger.
“I’m going to make a big decision about this within the next few weeks.”
Watch the clip here.
Rees-Mogg criticises ‘absurd’ smoking ban
Jacob Rees-Mogg has criticised the government’s “absurd” smoking ban, saying it will do nothing to help his party’s prospects at the general election.
The former business secretary was one of 165 Tory MPs who either abstained or voted against the ban last night in the House of Commons.
“The Conservative Party has an electoral mountain to climb. If we want to overturn the Labour lead in the opinion polls, we need to start pursuing conservative policies and show a sense of proportion,” he told GB News.
“How many voters will switch back to the Tories because of this complex and impractical ban, aggressively pushed by the people who gave us endless lockdowns?”
Rwanda stand-off continues as peers inflict fresh defeats on asylum policy
The parliamentary “ping-pong” over prime minister Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda scheme will continue on Wednesday after peers gave the controversial policy a fresh beating.
Despite MPs overturning previous changes by the House of Lords, the unelected chamber on Tuesday again pressed demands for revisions to the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, prolonging the parliamentary wrangling.
However, the bill is still expected to become law by the end of the week - potentially being cleared in the Commons tonight
Full report:
Rwanda stand-off continues as peers inflict fresh defeats on asylum policy
The legislation is to return to the Commons after the Lords again pressed demands for revisions to the controversial Bill.
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