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An international court has rejected Rwanda’s claim that Britain still owes more than £100 million ($135 million) from a scrapped deal to deport migrants.
Judges at the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague delivered the decision on Monday, rejecting Rwanda’s claim that the United Kingdom still had outstanding financial obligations under the controversial migration deal.
The agreement, signed in 2022 under former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, sought to relocate migrants who arrived in the UK through what the British government described as “dangerous or illegal journeys”, including crossings in small boats and lorries, to Rwanda.
From the outset, the policy faced intense legal, political and public scrutiny. Critics questioned its legality, cost, and humanitarian implications. The UK Supreme Court later ruled the scheme unlawful, dealing a major blow to the policy.
When Prime Minister Keir Starmer took office in July 2024, he swiftly scrapped the arrangement, declaring it “dead and buried” on his first full day in office. Starmer dismissed the plan as a “gimmick”, signalling a clear break from the previous administration’s immigration strategy.
Then interior minister Yvette Cooper was equally critical, describing the initiative as “the most shocking waste of taxpayers’ money I have ever seen”.
According to the current UK government, only four people travelled to Rwanda under the programme during the two years before it was shelved, and all of them did so voluntarily.
Britain’s government says roughly £290 million had already been paid to Rwanda under the arrangement. However, Kigali argued before the PCA that two additional annual payments of £50 million each remained unpaid.
The arbitration court, which handles contractual disputes between nations, dismissed the claims. Judges rejected one £50 million demand by majority decision and unanimously dismissed the second.
The ruling comes at a tense moment in UK-Rwanda relations. Britain has recently reduced aid to Rwanda, accusing Kigali of backing the M23 rebel group operating in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo, an allegation that has further strained diplomatic ties between the two countries.
