Former home secretary Ken Clarke has said Britain must act on illegal migration as he called on people to “give the Rwanda scheme a chance to work”.
Last month in the House of Lords, Mr Clarke backed the “extraordinary” small boats law and has reconfirmed his position as the Illegal Migration Bill is set for its third reading on Monday afternoon.
Everyone knows that it is a huge problem, and that, if we cannot find a solution, people will die in the Channel in considerable numbers by taking risks as they come here.— Ken Clark
Writing in The Telegraph, Mr Clarke said while he has advocated the benefits that migrants bring to Britain, “doing nothing about illegal immigration is not an option”.
He said: “Importantly, in all the debate about the Government’s Illegal Migration Bill, no one has advanced an alternative.
“I have listened keenly for an idea of how else we might deal with the mounting problem of irregular migration, but answer has come there none.”
The flagship legislation passed through the House of Commons but has met fierce opposition in the Lords.
It aims to ensure those who arrive in the UK without permission will be detained and promptly removed, either to their home country or a third country such as Rwanda.
Mr Clarke said he is not making his comments out of “slavish loyalty” and he has not always been an admirer of the Government.
But he lauded the Government’s approach to welcoming in Ukrainians and people from Hong Kong.
He said: “We are not becoming a walled-in, closed country. That is a good British contribution to a tremendous problem for the whole of the Western World.
“Everyone knows that (illegal migration) is a huge problem, and that, if we cannot find a solution, people will die in the Channel in considerable numbers by taking risks as they come here.”
It comes as 1,070 migrants crossed the Channel in 13 boats on Friday and in seven boats on Saturday, according to Home Office figures.
That takes the provisional total for the year so far to over 12,500 people.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman has been fighting to get her central policy of forcibly removing unauthorised arrivals to Rwanda off the ground after it was blocked by appeal judges.
The Government has lodged a bid to take its legal battle to the Supreme Court.
