The Labour Party will hold an absolute majority in the future British Parliament following the general elections of July 4, 2024, returning to power after 14 years in opposition, according to partial results. The Labour Party had promised during the campaign that it would end a controversial migration partnership agreement with Rwanda. Explanations.
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With our correspondent in London, Emeline Vin
Since July 4, the United Kingdom has a new Prime Minister: Labour’s Keir Starmer has been elected. His party has more than 400 seats, well beyond the majority. The Conservatives, for their part, have lost two thirds of their elected representatives. An electoral result that should not be without consequences for the plans of Migration partnership with Rwanda.
The relocation of asylum seekers and illegal migrants to Rwanda appears to be seriously compromised. Keir Starmer has been clear on this since the start of the campaign, and even before that: a Labour government will end the partnership with Kigali. He promises that no planes will fly to Rwanda, saving the British taxpayer millions of pounds, he says.
However, Keir Starmer has pledged to reduce immigration, particularly illegal immigration. The Labour manifesto does not give many details. It does mention the expulsion of people smugglers, to stop the networks responsible for the Channel crossings.
Labour could try to strike repatriation deals with some countries and with the European Union, which it hopes to move closer to.
Unlike the Conservatives, Labour assures that it will continue to welcome refugees and to respect international conventions, conventions that the outgoing government intended to circumvent with its Rwanda law.
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