Nearly half of asylum seekers facing removal from UK to Rwanda are married

Nearly half of asylum seekers facing removal to Rwanda are married and a fifth have children, according to a new survey.

The findings were released by the campaign coalition Together With Refugees, a coalition of more than 500 national and local organisations representing refugees, on Wednesday. The charity Care4Calais carried out the analysis.

It also found that most asylum seekers threatened with deportation to Rwanda are from countries where more than 80% of people have had their refugee status recognised by the UK. Three of the refugees in the sample identify as LGBTQ+, despite Rwanda being a country from which people fleeing persecution due to their sexual orientation can seek asylum in the UK.

The new research contradicts claims made by former home secretary Priti Patel, who launched the scheme to deter people crossing the Channel in small boats, saying they were not genuine asylum seekers and were elbowing out the women and children, who are at risk and fleeing persecution.

Nearly three-quarters (72%) of people in a sample of 213 people who were threatened with being sent to Rwanda by the Home Office have fled from countries such as Afghanistan, Eritrea, Iran, Sudan and Syria. At least 82% of people from these countries have successful applications in the UK.