The court has been asked to consider the foreign secretary’s application to keep secret parts of some government documents over fears the content could damage international relations and threaten national security. The government’s application for a certificate of public interest immunity (PII) asks that 10 short extracts be kept confidential. The Guardian, the BBC and the Times submitted motions to the court asking for those 10 passages to be disclosed, arguing that it was in the public interest. A draft judgment from Lord Justice Lewis on the PII application is due tomorrow. Neil Sheldon QC, representing the Secretary of State, told the court that the application was only to keep brief extracts out of the public domain and that most of the documents relating to the Rwandan plans had been declassified. Parties challenging the legality of the Rwandan policy – the PCS union, Care4Calais, Detention Action and some asylum seekers – say the extracts should be made public. Jude Bunting QC, acting for the three media organisations, said: “What we are seeking to defend is the public’s interest in the administration of justice.” Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Christopher Knight, who represents some of the plaintiffs, said of the documents that have already been released: “The number of criticisms is very strong.” He cited a document from a State Department official that says: “There are structures of state control, security, surveillance from the national level down to [households]. Political opposition is not tolerated, and arbitrary detention, torture, and even murder are also acceptable methods of control.” Similar concerns were raised at an earlier high court hearing last month. At that hearing, court documents revealed that on February 10, 2021, the UK High Commissioner to Rwanda said the UK should not enter into an agreement with Rwanda because the country had been accused of recruiting refugees to carry out armed operations in neighboring Countries. A Foreign Office memo dated 20 May 2021 urged No 10 not to engage in the Rwanda deal due to significant human rights concerns. When the UK government conducted an independent evaluation of Rwanda’s human rights record, the Home Office took it to Rwanda to comment on the final draft and allowed officials to suggest amendments. The full High Court hearing into the legality of plans to forcibly send some asylum seekers arriving in the UK in small boats or trucks to Rwanda is due to take place on 5 September.
