How UK plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda ended up before supreme court

Political stakes are high for ministers but refugees say their lives are at risk if policy is greenlit

The UK government's plans to send asylum seekers to Rwanda had generated controversy even before the former home secretary Priti Patel signed a deal with the east African country in April last year sealing the deal. Ministers claimed the plan would deter people from making the dangerous journey across the Channel on small boats.

On Monday, a case examining the legality of the policy reaches the UK's highest court, the supreme court. The political stakes for ministers are high but the asylum seekers threatened with being forcibly removed to Rwanda say their lives are at stake if the policy is greenlit.