Costly, inhumane, unlawful… now the Rwanda plan is also proving to be counterproductive

Editorial: The Home Office’s inability to locate thousands of migrants earmarked for its Rwanda deportation scheme shows that the only ‘deterrent’ is to asylum seekers being caught by the authorities. Rather, it will act as an incentive – only adding to the number of dangerous Channel crossings

Migrants arriving in Dungeness, Kent, on a small boat from France in 2021 (PA)

Common sense suggests that if someone receives a notification that something exceedingly grim is about to befall them, the rational course is to take evasive action.

Refugees facing the threat of deportation to Rwanda are no different to anyone else and, with a heightened sense of personal safety, have reportedly been evading the Home Office’s attempts to locate them. More than half of those people designated for forced removal cannot be found – which must come as a surprise to no one.

In a rare sign of progress for the tragically misconceived Rwanda plan, the east African nation – guaranteed safe by Conservative members of parliament with little direct knowledge of the place – has agreed to take some 5,700 asylum seekers. That is but a tiny fraction of the total, and the cost of sending them over will cost tens of millions in addition to the £290m already confirmed; but, still, it suggested that things were happening.