Legal cases may explain why Rwanda plan is not working, suggests No 10

As Channel crossings pick up, asylum seekers seem undeterred by plan to deport people to east Africa

Legal challenges to the policy of deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda could be a reason why the plan has not yet, as intended, started to deter unofficial Channel crossings, Downing Street has said.

After a period without significant numbers of crossings amid bad weather, several hundred of people made the journey in recent days, bringing the total to more than 7,000 so far this year. It is the first time this has happened since the passing of the nationalities and borders bill, which set out the policy framework.