Suella Braverman set to be given powers to ignore European judges

Suella Braverman is to be granted new powers to ignore attempts by European human rights judges to block migrant deportation flights under plans to be announced on Thursday.

The Home Secretary is expected to be given “discretion” to ignore Strasbourg injunctions, known as Rule 39 orders, which were used by a single judge at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) last June to ground the first flight to Rwanda.

The move, due to be set out in an amendment to Rishi Sunak’s Illegal Migration Bill on Thursday, is expected to head off a revolt by around 60 Tory MPs who have been demanding stronger action against the ECHR.

They have also secured promised changes to toughen the Bill so it will prevent lawyers in Britain from using domestic human rights or other legislation to block deportation flights. Such claims will only be considered after the Home Office has removed migrants who enter the UK illegally.

The Bill is due to return to the Commons for its final report stage next week before being considered by the House of Lords. The proposed legislation is central to Mr Sunak’s pledge to stop the boats.

It gives the Home Secretary powers to detain anyone who enters the UK illegally and deport them swiftly to their home country or a third safe nation such as Rwanda, where they can claim asylum. Ministers hope to enact the legislation before the summer recess.

They believe the measures will act as a deterrent to illegal Channel crossings as it was confirmed in court documents on Wednesday that the Home Office anticipates up to 56,000 small boat arrivals this year – 20 per cent higher than last year’s record 45,728.

Victoria Prentis, the Attorney General, still has to sign off Thursday’s amendments, which will threaten a fresh clash with Strasbourg.

Flights to Rwanda have been suspended since June as the injunction required the legality of the policy to be determined by the UK courts before the flights could take off. The Court of Appeal will hear the case next week.

Ministers will argue that they are not breaching the European Convention on Human Rights because rule 39 injunctions are only “internal rules” of the court. Mr Sunak has described them as “opaque, unfair and unjust”.

Ms Braverman had proposed to negotiate reforms of the injunctions with Strasbourg to ensure they were not used arbitrarily and without the UK Government having a say. She reserved the right to take powers to ignore them, but Tory MPs believed that did not go far enough and tabled amendments to enact them immediately.

It is understood the MPs have now agreed to withdraw them in return for the concessions offered in talks on Tuesday night with Robert Jenrick, the immigration minister, Home Office officials and political advisers from Number 10.

MP Danny Kruger, the former political secretary to Boris Johnson, who led the revolt, said: “The British public are fed up with London lawyers and Strasbourg judges getting in the way of a sensible migration policy.

“On the basis of discussions that are still under way, I’m hopeful the Government will be able to deliver the prompt removals to Rwanda and other safe countries that we need in order to stop the boats and lay the foundation of a fair and humane asylum system.”

The curbs on domestic injunctions in UK courts aim to ensure that the only way to stop a deportation is by persuading a British judge it would lead to “serious and irreversible harm”. Claims made on the basis of the UK’s Human Rights Act or ECHR or on any other basis would not be allowed.

In a move to head off a revolt by moderate Tory MPs, the Government is also expected to pledge to draw up plans, within six months of the Bill becoming law, for refugees to come to the UK through “safe and legal” routes.

These routes would be additional to the current schemes for Ukraine, Hong Kong, Syria and Afghanistan and would start taking refugees in the subsequent year, subject to a cap on numbers agreed by Parliament.