Prime Minister Boris Johnson has accused the BBC of being more critical of the new immigration scheme with Rwanda than Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking during a private meeting with Tory MPs, Mr Johnson said that the BBC had “misconstrued” the policy to send immigrants to the African country.
He also added that the BBC and the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby were “less vociferous” in condemning Russian President Vladimir Putin then they have been with the new deal.
The Prime Minister’s remarks come just days after the Archbishop deemed the plans ungodly, while his counterpart in York, Stephen Cottrell, also used his Easter sermon to deride the idea as “so depressing and distressing”.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson
Daniel Leal
Mr Johnson has hit out at the BBC
Ian West
Mr Welby said there are “serious ethical questions about sending asylum seekers overseas”.
He said: “The details are for politics. The principle must stand the judgment of God, and it cannot.
“It cannot carry the weight of resurrection justice, of life conquering death. It cannot carry the weight of the resurrection that was first to the least valued, for it privileges the rich and strong.”
It comes after former Prime Minister Theresa May questioned the “legality, practicality and efficacy” of the Government’s plan.
Mrs May, often seen as a hardliner on immigration, warned on Tuesday the policy to send migrants who arrive by unauthorised boats to East Africa could lead to an increase in the trafficking of women and children.
Home Secretary Priti Patel has insisted the policy is legal and was needed to tackle smuggling gangs who “effectively exploit various loopholes in our existing laws”.
