The Home Office said it has “robust plans” for flights to Rwanda, following reports airlines have so far refused to sign contracts to take part in the flagship asylum policy. The Sunday Times reported that firms have so far declined to sign up over fears of damage to their reputations from taking part in the plan.
According to the paper, ministers have since appointed an agent to source a commercial aircraft supplier willing to ferry migrants to the African nation if and when the scheme becomes operational. A failure to do so raises the prospect of the Ministry of Defence and the RAF stepping in.
Home Official officials insist that if and when the Rwanda legislation becomes law, there will be flights available. A Government spokesman said: “The Government is committed to doing whatever it takes to stop the boats and get flights to Rwanda off the ground as soon as possible.
“Rwanda is ready to welcome large numbers of people and we have robust plans in place for future flights following discussions with a range of companies.” The same paper also reported that Boscombe Down, north of Salisbury, is intended to be used as the airfield for flights. But it reported it still requires considerable investment to improve fencing and security.
Any further complications to the Rwanda scheme would prove a major headache for the Prime Minister, who is battling to see flights take off before the next general election – expected before January 2025. Mr Sunak moved a step forward this week in his efforts to revive the Rwanda scheme after the Supreme Court defeat.
He managed to see off threats of a backbench rebellion to comfortably pass his legislation in the Commons at second reading. By Nisha Mal, Nottinghamshire Live
A Coventry University graduate fled the war in Ukraine with nothing more than a single bag, but never gave up on his dream to study psychology.
Anuoluwapo Ojo, known as Anu, received his offer letter from Coventry University just two days before the war with Russia broke out which "shattered his whole world and meant he had to run for his life".
He said: "I had only seen wars in movies. I had only seen missile shots in movies, but I saw it with my own eyes. However, I am grateful that I was able to escape.
"I lived in the calm neighbourhood of Irpen, near Kyiv, and on February 24, 2022, I woke up to the sound of bombs at around 6am. The airport and train stations were closed, so the only way out was by car, heading for the Ukraine-Polish border.
"The roads were jammed as everyone was trying to escape and what should have taken ten hours turned into more than 24. We then had to leave the car and walk, finding our way through the fields and after a long and tough trip, we crossed into Poland.
"It then took three to four months travelling from Poland to Germany to Belgium, just trying to get refugee status and to get some sort of stability with my life because my investments, businesses, life, everything was null and void."
Anu, who is originally from Nigeria, moved to Ukraine in 2010 to study medicine and surgery, and went on to qualify as a doctor in Ukraine where he worked and built a life for himself. After finishing his first degree, Anu went for postgraduate specialist training in psychiatry working in a hospital for two years, training as a psychiatric doctor. It was during this time that he decided to explore the psychology part of the job and applied to Coventry University.
After settling as a war refugee in the Netherlands, Anu was able to defer his place at Coventry University and in the meantime took up part-time jobs to raise money to fulfil his dream.
"It took me a few months and I worked pretty hard, but I made sure that I didn't give up hope," he said.
"Having gone through the trauma of war, you just want some sort of respite. Imagine all the beauty of life upon the place that you have called home, all of your investments and businesses, everything gone? The house you lived in bombed. I literally left Ukraine with just a bag; no clothes, nothing.
"There were of course moments where I felt down, but I had a very good support system around me. I had my girlfriend who is now my fiancée and soon to be wife. And I had friends and family who would call and tell me not to worry and everything would be fine."
At the same time as studying for his masters in psychology, Anu was also studying for his medical licence so he could practice medicine in the UK.
Anu didn't disclose his refugee status to the course team until after he had completed his degree. However, he did share his plans to continue his medical career in the UK and that he was managing exams for both the psychology course and his UK medical licence. Based on this, Dr Katherine Hall lecturer in psychology and Anu's course director at Coventry University, chose Anu as the winner of the course's Endeavour award.
She said: "Anu's achievements over the past few years are remarkable in the face of extreme challenges. He was awarded the psychology prize for Endeavour based on his humble and optimistic outlook and dedication to academic success in the face of adversity.
"I hope that Anu's story can inspire other students to persevere and achieve their goals. I also hope it encourages other students to share their stories and seek support where needed if they do experience challenges."
Anu, who recently graduated, added: "There's no mountain too high, there's no obstacle that can't be overcome and so with my willpower, with my determination and the strong support system I had around me, I am here today as a masters graduate."
He now plans to stay in the UK and use his degree to land a dream role.
Coventry University is a global, modern university with a mission of creating better futures. We were founded by entrepreneurs and industrialists in 1843 as the Coventry School of Design and we continue to work with businesses to ensure we provide job-ready graduates with the skills and creative thinking to improve their communities.
With a proud tradition of innovative teaching and learning, Coventry University is now one of the largest in the UK and has world-class campus facilities, the UK's first standalone 5G network and a digital community of learning. Our students are part of a global network that has 50,000 learners studying Coventry University degrees in more than 40 different countries and partnerships with 150 higher education providers worldwide.
Over two centuries, we have flourished in our home city and Coventry University Group now also delivers access to our range of high-quality services and partnerships through bases in London, Scarborough, Belgium, Poland, Egypt, Dubai, Singapore and Africa. From September 2023, we will be teaching students at a new campus in China in a joint institution with Communication University of China.
A desperate mother has told of her agonising 15-month wait for a decision from the Home Office on whether she can bring her remaining family from war-torn Sudan to Scotland after losing three children amid the conflict.
Kaltouma Haroun Ibrahim, 43, who lives in Glasgow and is a valued member of the community at Gorbals Parish Church, was granted leave to remain status in 2019, giving her the right to live and work in the UK.
She has not seen her husband Hassan, her son Nassar, 18, or daughter Awadiya, 14, since they were separated nearly 10 years ago, and is growing increasingly concerned about their safety in Sudan.
Mrs Ibrahim believes people “are dying every day” in the region due to continued fighting between two rival groups, and is urging the Home Office to make a decision that could finally reunite her family.
Her lawyer submitted paperwork to officials about 15 months ago to bring them all to Scotland under a UK Government policy on family reunion, but has yet to receive confirmation they can join her.
Mrs Ibrahim said: “Sudan is a very dangerous place and I am very afraid for my family.
“I have already lost three children and I need my other two and my husband here with me in Glasgow where it is safe.”
Sudan became independent of the UK in 1956 and the country has been gripped by civil war for the majority of years since.
The latest conflict broke out in April when the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces began fighting around the capital city Khartoum and the Darfur region.
Thousands of people have died with millions more displaced, but despite the North African country’s historical links to the UK, there is no safe and legal route for Sudanese people to seek safety here.
Mrs Ibrahim was born and raised in Chad, where she met her Sudanese husband, but the couple were forced to flee the country after his life was repeatedly threatened.
They moved to neighbouring Sudan but civil war forced the family to move again to Libya in 2014, where they secured passage on a boat bound for Italy across the Mediterranean Sea.
The vessel sank shortly after departure and two of the couple’s young children, aged four and six, drowned.
The survivors reached the shore but Mrs Ibrahim became separated from her husband and three surviving children after she was taken to hospital in Libya.
She was unable to find them after she was discharged and eventually returned to Chad, where she thought she would be safe.y people looking for her husband.
Friends paid for her to escape to France and then London in 2016 to claim asylum. She moved to Glasgow the following year and secured refugee status and a residence permit in 2019.
Mrs Ibrahim finally managed to track down her husband and teenage children in Khartoum, but her daughter Safa, 13, died from wounds sustained in a rocket attack near her home in the city four months ago.
Mrs Ibrahim said: “There is a lot of looting and violence, people come into your house and attack you.
“Every day there is fighting and people die.”
As well as playing an active volunteer role at Gorbals Parish Church, Mrs Ibrahim is studying at Anniesland College to improve her English and also works part-time with disabled children for Glasgow City Council.
Catriona Milligan, a community development worker at the church, said of Mrs Ibrahim: “She has leave to remain in the UK, she has passed all the tests required to be a refugee, and she is only asking for something that someone in her situation is entitled to – to be reunited with her immediate family in a place of safety.
“It is an utter disgrace that it has not happened already because her family are in danger on a daily basis, there is looting, violence and hunger.
“Three of her children are already dead, who can live like that?”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “All applications are carefully considered on their individual merits and in line with the immigration rules.” By Paul Cargill, The Irish Times
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