Rishi Sunak vows to get 'grip' on migrant crisis amid pressure to sign deal with France
Rishi Sunak is leaving with "renewed confidence and optimism" after talks with Emmanuel Macron on how to tackle the migrant crisis
Rishi Sunak has vowed to work better with France and other European nations to "grip this challenge of illegal migration", as he faced pressure to make a fresh agreement over small boat Channel crossings.
The prime minister could be heard telling Emmanuel Macron they had "lots to talk about" as the pair were all smiles as they embraced at the COP27 UN climate change summit in Egypt on Monday.
Downing Street said talks on a deal with France were in their “final stages”, following the leaders' first face-to-face encounter since Mr Sunak entered Number 10.
Their meeting came just hours after Business Secretary Grant Shapps said he took action to stop the Home Office from breaking the law at Manston migration processing centre, which has been the centre of controversy in recent weeks amid serious overcrowding.
Acknowledging tackling Channel crossings is a “complex issue”, Mr Sunak reiterated at the climate summit that he was “determined to grip” the situation but stressed there was “not one simple solution that’s going to solve it overnight”, adding: “We all want this situation to resolve itself as quickly as possible.”
The PM also discussed this "shared challenge" when he met the new Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Sharm El-Sheikh.
“I’m actually leaving this with renewed confidence and optimism that working together with our European partners, we can make a difference, grip this challenge of illegal migration and stop people coming illegally," Mr Sunak said.
Talks on the specifics of a deal with France were also taking place separately involving Home Office officials, the prime minister’s official spokesman indicated.
Mr Sunak also stood by Home Secretary Suella Braverman, telling broadcasters the government was making “good progress” on reducing the numbers at the overcrowded Manston migrant processing centre, adding that she was “focused” on the need to “reduce the number of people coming here illegally.”
Ms Braverman came under increasing pressure to fix the crisis as she denied ignoring legal advice which warned migrants were being detained for unlawfully long periods, or blocking plans to tackle overcrowding by failing to book hotels for migrants.
But Business Secretary Mr Shapps earlier on Monday revealed that during his brief tenure as home secretary, he received legal advice that the government was "in danger" of breaking the law at the overcrowded Manston migrant processing centre in Kent.
The former military base, which opened as a processing centre in February intending to hold a maximum of 1,600 people for up to 24 hours, was housing around 4,000 with some staying up to four weeks.
'I received very early legal advice telling me that that centre... was being used, or in danger of being used, as a detention centre', Grant Shapps told ITV News.
Mr Shapps, who spent just six days in the role after Liz Truss sacked his predecessor Ms Braverman before she was re-appointed by Mr Sunak hardly a week later, said he took "a series of steps" to ensure Manston was not illegally used as a detention centre.
"I received very early legal advice telling me that that centre, which is actually a processing centre at the airfield in Manston, was being used instead, or in danger of being used, as a detention centre," Mr Shapps told ITV News.
"So there were a series of steps that I took, including authorising people moving out of there, and changing the nature of the centre so that it didn't detain people in all cases in order to come within the law.
"And I noticed that my successor - and also my predecessor - as home secretary has continued the policy that I put in place."
Immigration minister Robert Jenrick told the Commons on Monday there had been a “significant reduction” in the number of people at the facility and this was now “back below” its maximum capacity of 1,600 after more than 2,300 migrants were moved to other accommodation.
Mr Sunak has defended his government's handling of newly arrived asylum seekers - though he admitted "not enough" claims are being processed amid the “serious and escalating problem”.
ITV News Political Reporter Harry Horton has the latest on the Home Office's handling of the migrant crisis
His comments come after outbreaks of MRSA, diphtheria and scabies were reported at Manston, while young asylum seekers being held at the facility reportedly begged for help saying they feel like they're in "prison".
Hundreds of people staged a protest in the pouring rain outside the migrant holding centre on Sunday, demanding the site be shut down.
It came as Ms Braverman pledged to speed up the asylum system with a nationwide roll-out of a trial tested in Leeds to help streamline the application process.
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The eight-week pilot doubled the average number of claims processed and reduced the time asylum seekers wait for a first interview by 40%, the Home Office said.
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Secretary Dominic Raab said Mr Sunak is set to revive the British Bill of Rights as part of his government’s strategy to deal with the small boats crisis.
He said the legislation – giving the UK courts supremacy over the European Court of Human Rights – will return to Parliament “in the coming weeks”.
The Bill was shelved by Ms Truss when she became prime minister in September after Government sources warned it was “unlikely to progress in its current form”.
The proposed legislation is unlikely to provide a quick fix though as it is also highly controversial and the government is likely to face a tough battle – particularly in the House of Lords – to get it on to the statute book.