UK leadership: Truss and Sunak pledge crackdown on migration

As part of the campaigns to succeed as the next Tory leader and prime minister, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak have pledged to tighten restrictions on immigration to the UK.

Sunak said that he would tighten the definition of who is eligible for asylum and introduce a limit on the number of refugees, while Truss promised to expand the United Kingdom's Rwanda asylum program and hire more Border Force personnel.

So far this year, more than 14,000 migrants have travelled to the UK on small boats over the Channel, reports BBC.

In an effort to prevent the crossings, the government declared in April that it would send certain asylum seekers who were deemed to have entered the UK illegally to Rwanda in order to seek asylum there.

Despite numerous legal issues, no asylum applicants have yet been deported to the east African country.

If the scheme is found to be illegal at a forthcoming inquiry, the UK could forfeit the £120 million it has already given to Rwanda.

Both candidates for the presidency pledged to look into similar deals with other countries.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss told the Mail on Sunday she was adamant that the Rwanda policy was the best course of action and that she would see it through to completion.

Additionally, Truss stated that she would boost the Border Force's workforce from 9,000 to 10,800 if elected leader of the Tory Party and prime minister.

In addition, she pledged to strengthen the UK bill of rights, saying, "I'm determined to end the appalling human trafficking we're seeing."

Sunak, a former chancellor, also promised to do "whatever it takes" to ensure the success of the Rwanda scheme and criticised the UK's migration policy as "broken" and "chaotic."

According to his plans, the UK would evaluate aid, economic agreements, and visa choices based on a country's readiness to assist in the repatriation of unsuccessful asylum seekers and criminals.

In addition, he pledged to give Parliament authority over the number of immigrants who enter the UK by setting an annual quota on the number of refugees allowed, but this might be altered in an emergency.

Additionally, he declared that he will enact "increased powers" to hold, tag, and oversee individuals breaking UK immigration laws.

The system is currently in disarray, he claimed, with law-abiding residents witnessing boats full of unauthorised immigrants leaving the safe nation of France and our sailors and coastguards appearing helpless to stop them.

However, the pair's suggestions were criticised by the opposition home secretary, Yvette Cooper, who claimed that the Rwanda plan was a waste of government money.

She said, "Twelve years have passed since the Conservatives took office. It is incomprehensible that they would assert that they are the ones who can make things right when they have both repeatedly failed."

Last month, 47 persons were informed that a flight to Rwanda was scheduled for June 14. But the flight was cancelled following a number of legal challenges.

No additional flights have been planned as of yet.

The effectiveness of the plan was questioned earlier this week by a Commons select committee, which claimed there was "no clear evidence" that it would prevent dangerous Channel crossings.

The two candidates argued on Saturday about their tax strategies.

Sunak's allegation that it would be improper to increase government borrowing in order to finance tax cuts was dismissed by Truss as a significant policy disagreement between the candidates.

She is pledging around £30 billion in immediate tax cuts, arguing that they will spur the economy, but Sunak has warned that these cuts could exacerbate inflation, which is already at an all-time high.

Voting papers are expected to start reaching Conservative Party members this week, and the winner will be declared on September 5.

Sunak, who quit as part of the government mutiny against Boris Johnson, topped the MPs' ballots to qualify for the final run-off with Truss.

But current polls indicate that party members, who elect the leader, favour the foreign secretary as a candidate.

Many of the approximately 160,000 Tory members are expected to cast ballots in the upcoming weeks.

The two contenders will face off in a live BBC TV discussion on Monday, followed by one organised by The Sun and TalkTV on Tuesday. Hustings will take place throughout July and August.