Even though there are reports of a civil service backlash, British Home Secretary Priti Patel believes other countries will follow her Rwanda asylum plan.
Patel said Denmark could be among those to reproduce the United Kingdom government’s "blueprint" after it signed a deal to transfer those asylum seekers deemed to have arrived in Britain unlawfully 6,000 miles (9,656 kilometers) away to east Africa.
The Cabinet minister’s remarks come despite reports of a row over the immigration reforms and a warning by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) that the Rwanda pact breaches international law.
Multiple reports have surfaced that Patel took the rare step of issuing a ministerial direction to overrule concerns of civil servants about whether the concept will deliver value for money.
As part of the plan designed to curb migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats, those who are deemed to have entered Britain by unlawful means since Jan. 1 may be sent to Rwanda where they will be permitted to apply for asylum in the African country.
According to the Daily Telegraph, the claimed use of the ministerial direction by the home secretary was only the second deployment of the power within the Home Office in the past 30 years.
The Home Office declined to comment on the matter when approached by the PA news agency.
The Telegraph said unions representing staff in Whitehall have warned of mass walk-outs and transfer requests over ethical and legal concerns about the policy, claiming Patel faces a "mutiny" over her recently unveiled idea.
Defending the plan, Justice and Immigration minister Tom Pursglove told broadcasters that there was a "moral imperative" to crush the "cruel" business model of human traffickers making money out of migrants wanting to cross the Channel.
He also argued the scheme would save taxpayers money in the "longer-term," although he accepted the short-term cost would be equivalent to what the U.K. currently pays to accommodate and process asylum seekers domestically – approximately 5 million pounds ($6.53 million) per day.
Patel agreed to a 120-million-pound economic deal while in Kigali on Thursday and money for each removal is expected to follow, with reports suggesting each migrant sent to Rwanda is expected to set British taxpayers back between 20,000 and 30,000 pounds.
Speaking to reporters, she believed the plan was likely to be emulated by others, including countries in Europe.
"There is no question now that the model we have put forward, I’m convinced is world-class and a world first, and it will be used as a blueprint going forward, there’s no doubt about that," Patel said.
"I would not be surprised if other countries start coming to us direct on the back of this as well," she expected.
The Home Secretary said Copenhagen was in talks with Rwanda as well, adding the Council of Europe "have also basically said they are interested in working with us."
The Rwanda deal has faced fierce international criticism, with the UNHCR saying it "strongly condemns" the approach laid out by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Patel.
Gillian Triggs, assistant secretary-general at the UNHCR, called it an "egregious breach of international law and refugee law" and labeled it "unacceptable."
Speaking to the BBC, Triggs also questioned whether it would act as a long-term deterrent, given Israel’s attempt to do something similar in Rwanda with Eritrean and Sudanese incomers saw the refugees "leave the country and start the process all over again."
The Home Office denied its approach was in breach of refugee agreements.
A spokesperson argued: "Under this agreement, Rwanda will process claims in accordance with the U.N. Refugee Convention, national and international human rights laws, and will ensure their protection from inhuman and degrading treatment or being returned to the place they originally fled. There is nothing in the U.N. Refugee Convention which prevents removal to a safe country."
