On 13th April 2022 the UK Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Republic of Rwanda on what is described as an ‘asylum partnership arrangement’. The agreement seeks to enable the ‘transfer’, or forced removal, of asylum-seekers from the UK to Rwanda to have their claims determined there, in accordance with Rwandan asylum and immigration law. The legal foundation for the UK’s proposed externalization of refugee determination and protection is the Nationality and Borders Act 2022. This legislation also criminalises people simply for seeking asylum, and denies refugees key rights.

This panel discussion brings together four people whose experience and expertise makes them uniquely placed to analyse these developments, and their consequences for refugee protection.

Panellists:

Zoe Bantleman (Legal Director, Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association)

Behrouz Boochani (author, journalist and Associate Professor at UNSW)

Lawrence Bottinick (Representative ad interim, UNHCR London)

Baroness Shami Chakrabarti CBE (Member of the UK House of Lords)

Chair: Catherine Briddick (Departmental Lecturer, Refugee Studies Centre)