Lords vote to exempt heroes who supported British troops from flights to Rwanda

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Peers voted to exempt Afghan heroes who supported British troops from being sent to Rwanda under Rishi Sunak's flagship Small Boat Bill .

The House of Lords on Wednesday evening backed an amendment that would prevent the government from removing anyone who has supported the British armed forces in a “visible or significant” way from being deported to the African country.

This follows extensive reporting from The Independent on the fate of Afghan heroes who helped the British but were left behind after the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban.

Two former chiefs of defense staff, a former defense secretary and a former British ambassador to the United States were among the Lords who supported the clause. Peers voted 244 to 160 in favor of the amendment tabled by Labor colleague Des Browne, which also covers family members of those who supported British troops.

The Independenthas documented a number of cases of asylum seekers who supported the efforts of the British armed forces in Afghanistan and who have since been threatened with deportation to the Rwanda after arriving in the UK via small boat.

Peers inflicted a number of heavy defeats on Mr Sunak's bill on Wednesday evening.

The House of Lords also backed an amendment that would overturn the government's plan to exclude domestic courts from the process of deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda.

The clause, supported by 278 votes to 189, restores the jurisdiction of national courts to determine Rwanda's security and allows them to intervene in certain cases.

Ahead of the next election, Rishi Sunak has made “stopping the boats” a key leadership commitment

(AFP/PA)

Mr Sunak’s government