Suella Braverman urges Rishi Sunak to ‘change course’ over Rwanda bill following Jenrick resignation | Politics News

Suella Braverman has said she “very much hopes the prime minister changes course” with his efforts to tackle illegal migration after his plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda was dealt a blow with the resignation of Robert Jenrick.

The former home secretary, who was sacked by Rishi Sunak last month, said she wanted the prime minister to “succeed in stopping the boats” but that he would have to “change course” and “take on observations” from critics to do that.

Ms Braverman, who warned in the Commons on Wednesday that the Conservatives faced “electoral oblivion in a matter of months” over the issue, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I want the prime minister to succeed in stopping the boats.

“He said he would do whatever it takes. I’m telling him there is a way to succeed in stopping the boats and fulfilling that promise.

“If we do it, if he does it as prime minister, he will be able to lead us into the next election telling the people we have succeeded on this very important pledge.”

Ms Braverman is the latest senior Conservative to pour scorn over the prime minister’s emergency Rwanda bill, published last night, which compels UK judges to treat the African nation as a safe country and gives ministers powers to disregard sections of the Human Rights Act.

Last night Mr Sunak suffered the resignation of Mr Jenrick over the bill, which he said “does not go far enough” and called a “triumph of hope over experience”.

Although the bill allows ministers to disapply sections of the Human Rights Act, it does not disregard the entire legislation, as some had demanded, and it does not include powers to dismiss the whole of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).