The Rwanda asylum plan is not a “silver bullet” in stopping Channel crossings, Downing Street has said. Asked about Tory unease about James Cleverly’s comment that the initiative is not the “be all and end all”, Rishi Sunak’s spokesman told reporters on Monday: “We have made significant substantive progress in stopping the boats, with crossings down a third year-on-year. So it is a crucial part of our approach to stopping the boats, but as we’ve always been clear, there is no one silver bullet. And that’s why we – alongside the continued work to secure the Rwanda migration partnership – we are taking action, whether that’s on bilateral returns agreements, or further co-operation with our French counterparts, and that is having an impact. Former Brexit MEP Ben Habib says that ‘uncontrolled and illegal migration’ is putting pressure on public infrastructure and taking the economy in a ‘downward spiral’.
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