The Home Secretary has updated Parliament on the UK – Rwanda Memorandum of Understanding which was widely reported and signed over Easter.

Before Christmas Pope Francis reminded us Jesus solemnly tells us that He is present in the stranger, in the refugee, in those who are naked and hungry, and He is offended when we abandon them to indifference.

We share the concerns expressed by the UNHCR and across the faith and civic sectors that the UK government’s plans to refuse to consider claims for asylum, and to transport asylum seekers to Rwanda break both international and UK law. We share the concerns expressed about the human rights situation in Rwanda, which for all its qualities, there remain serious concerns about.

As Pope Francis tells us; Let us stop ignoring reality, stop constantly shifting responsibility, stop passing off the issue of migration to others, as if it mattered to no one and was only a pointless burden to be shouldered by somebody else!