Why Keir Starmer has opened up clear blue water with the Tories over their Rwanda deportation plan

A year and a half after Boris Johnson and the then home secretary, Priti Patel, unveiled their Rwanda deportation plan, the flagship immigration scheme hangs in the balance.

It has been deemed unlawful in the Court of Appeal, a flight is yet to take off for the country’s capital Kigali, and Sir Keir Starmer has promised to axe the plan if Labour wins power.

His promise, in an interview with the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, is the strongest indication yet that Labour will junk the policy if the party wins the election.

Asked whether he would axe it even if it were deemed legal and small boat crossings fell, Sir Keir said that he would, calling it “the wrong policy”.

So where does that leave the future of the government’s flagship immigration policy?

What is the plan, and why has nobody been deported yet?

The government wants to forcibly deport immigrants arriving in the UK via irregular routes, such as via the English Channel.

It hopes that the threat of a one-way flight to Rwanda or another third country will deter immigrants from attempting to enter the UK, delivering on Rishi Sunak’s promise to “stop the boats”.

But, despite the government having already paid Kigali £140m, the policy has been ruled illegal on the grounds that Rwanda is not a safe country for Britain to send asylum seekers to.

The government is appealing the decision, with a further ruling expected in November.

Even if it is cleared by the Supreme Court, the government may face attempts by the European Court of Human Rights to ground any deportation flights, raising the prospect that Mr Sunak could ignore injunctions from judges in Strasbourg.

What has Labour said about the scheme in the past?

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper has consistently said that the plan is “unworkable, unethical and extortionately expensive”, adding that it will do nothing to stop small boat crossings.

Ms Cooper and Sir Keir have said they will get rid of the policy and crack down on smuggling gangs in an effort to tackle Channel crossings.

Last month, Sir Keir revealed plans to strike a post-Brexit returns agreement with the EU, vowing to put people-smuggling “on a par” with terrorism.

But, quizzed on the policy on Sunday morning, Sir Keir said Labour would get rid of the policy even if it worked.

Why has Labour drawn a red line?

Sir Keir said the policy is “hugely expensive” and that the number of people going to Rwanda overall would be “tiny”.

“The real problem is at source,” he added.

His comments open up clear blue water with the Conservative Party, which has been locked in legal battles over the plan, with some MPs even calling for Britain to leave the ECHR.

Sir Keir is trying to tilt Labour away from what party insiders consider to be “gimmicky” policies, such as the Rwanda plan, as the party prepares itself for government.

So will the Rwanda plan go ahead under Labour?

Sir Keir has previously flip-flopped on major policies, including turning away from a number of pledges made during his campaign to become Labour leader, such as scrapping tuition fees.

But given the exorbitant costs, estimated at £169,000 per person sent to Rwanda, and the legal and ethical difficulties of the policy, Sir Keir is unlikely to row back on his comments.

It will mean that whatever happens between now and the next election, Britain will not be deporting migrants to Rwanda under a Labour government.