James Cleverly has signed a fresh treaty with Rwanda in a bid to get the stalled policy off the ground.
The Home Secretary inked the agreement alongside his Rwandan counterpart Vincent Birut in Kigali today.
The new deal comes after the Supreme Court ruled the policy to send asylum seekers on a one-way ticket to the African nation was unlawful in a major blow to Rishi Sunak.
Five of the UK’s most senior justices cited concerns there was a risk genuine refugees could be sent back to their country of origin.
Mr Cleverly signed the fresh treaty as part of efforts to make the plan legally watertight.
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The Home Secretary said he believes the new deal addresses the concerns of the Supreme Court.
But he could not guarantee the first flight would leave the tarmic by the spring.
Mr Cleverly said: “We want to see this part of our wider migration plan up and running as quickly as possible.
“We feel very strongly this treaty addresses all of the issues of their lordships in the Supreme Court.”
He said he “cannot see any credible reason” to question Rwanda’s track record, adding the new domestic legislation will come “soon”.
