Midge Ure has branded the Tories "utterly repugnant" after the Home Secretary doubled down on a policy to send asylum seekers to Rwanda. The Scots singer-songwriter lambasted Suella Braverman on Twitter as she was seen giving a statement on the policy in the East African country.
Braverman, Conservative MP for Fareham, said she was "absolutely delighted" about the UK Government's scheme to deport vulnerable migrants from the UK to Rwanda.
A video shared on Twitter of her visit shows her stating: "We are absolutely delighted and excited about our partnership with Rwanda to be creating a vibrant community here to be a positive to be a positive, beautiful and secure haven and home for many thousands of people."
The clip was slammed online, with many describing the move as "repulsive." And Band Aid icon Ure was among those highly critical of the policy.
Sharing the clip, the Vienna singer wrote: "How can one party find so many members who are devoid of empathy, soul and caring yet so full of s*** and abject evil? The only success they seem to have had is to succeed at being utterly repugnant."
The UK Government has paid Rwanda £120million to take migrants. The immigration policy has come in for criticism from various groups, with even Prince Charles said to be "more than disappointed" by it amid reports that he privately described the move to send migrants to Rwanda as "appalling".
The first deportation flight was then grounded last year following a series of objections against individual removals and the policy as a whole. The UK Government's plans, however, were later ruled as lawful at the High Court in London.
In a summary of the ruling read out in court, Lord Justice Lewis said: "The court has concluded that it is lawful for the Government to make arrangements for relocating asylum seekers to Rwanda and for their asylum claims to be determined in Rwanda rather than in the United Kingdom."
"The relocation of asylum seekers to Rwanda is consistent with the Refugee Convention and with the statutory and other legal obligations on the Government, including the obligations imposed by the Human Rights Act 1998."
The Home Office has been approached for comment.
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