Boris Johnson Calls for Revival of Rwanda Deportation Plan Over Digital ID Scheme

Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has urged the British government to reinstate the Rwanda migrant deportation plan, arguing that it would be more effective than the proposed digital ID system for tackling illegal immigration.

The government led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer has been developing a digital identity card system, which would be issued to children from the age of 13. The cards would store detailed personal information, helping authorities, employers, and landlords distinguish between legal residents and undocumented migrants.

Starmer’s administration believes this approach could address the growing number of migrants entering the UK illegally, following the failure of previous border control strategies that relied on increased surveillance, technology, and arrests of smugglers.

In an interview with GB News, Boris Johnson criticized the digital ID plan as expensive and ineffective, insisting that it would not curb the rising influx of illegal migrants.

Asked what alternative he proposed, Johnson said reviving the Rwanda deportation plan would act as a deterrent, preventing thousands of migrants arriving in small boats from crossing the Channel.

Using a football metaphor, Johnson remarked, “If we had the Rwanda plan in place, we wouldn’t have let them score that goal we’d have kicked the ball straight back.”

The Rwanda asylum partnership, introduced in April 2022 under Johnson’s government, aimed to send asylum seekers arriving illegally in the UK to Rwanda, where they would be processed and offered resettlement support. In return, Rwanda would receive financial assistance to care for the migrants and strengthen its development programs.

However, the first deportation flight scheduled for June 2022 was blocked by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) following legal challenges from human rights organizations.

The UK and Rwanda later revised the deal in late 2023 to address earlier legal concerns, and both countries’ parliaments approved the updated agreement.

When Keir Starmer took office in July 2024, he scrapped the policy, calling it “unworkable and ineffective” in preventing illegal Channel crossings.

Official data show that 29,437 undocumented migrants entered the UK in 2023, rising to 43,640 in 2024. Between January and September 29, 2025, authorities recorded 33,556 arrivals.