Lord Carlile Rips Rwanda Bill Court Subversion As ‘Step Towards Totalitarianism’

Lord Alex Carlile, leading barrister and cross-bench peer, ripped the government’s Rwanda bill as a “step towards totalitarianism” in a scathing criticism of the legislation which aims to override the Supreme Court to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda.

The bill, which passed its third reading in the Commons Wednesday night, sparked intense debate and opposition, particularly in the House of Lords.

Lord Carlile, a former terrorism legislation reviewer, confirmed the Lords’ resolve to resist the bill. He expressed concern over the government’s attempt to override a Supreme Court judgement by declaring Rwanda a safe country for asylum seekers.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today, Lord Carlile further warned against the dangers of the government placing itself above the courts, telling host Nick Robinson: “We’ve seen in various other countries, the damage that’s done when governments use perceived and often ill-judged political imperatives to place themselves above the courts.”

He emphasized the role of the House of Lords in protecting the public and the integrity of the UK’s legal system from such government overreach.

“This is an illegitimate interference by politics with the law on an issue that can be solved in other ways,” he said.

Lord Carlile continued: “This is a step towards totalitarianism and an attitude that the United Kingdom usually deprecated. And I think you’ll find that in the House of Lords, not everybody that many of the lawyers in the House floors will say this is a step too far. This is illegitimate interference by politics with the law on an issue that can be solved in other ways. And let’s face it. [Prime Minister] Rishi Sunak tried to stop this bill himself at one stage because he knows it’s a very bad bill.”