Prime minister, Rishi Sunak speaks during a press conference in Downing Street in London, after he saw the Safety of Rwanda Bill pass its third reading in the House of Commons. Picture date: Thursday January 18, 2024. Stefan Rousseau/Pool via REUTERS/files
LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Tuesday he was "taken by surprise" as he explained why he agreed to a 1,000 pound ($1,255) bet that his government would send asylum seekers to Rwanda before the next general election.
The prime minister has faced criticism from opposition parties, who said the bet with the broadcaster Piers Morgan was distasteful and showed he was out of touch with the concerns of ordinary voters.
Under the Rwanda plan, which has yet to be carried out, asylum seekers who arrive on England's southern coast in small, inflatable boats will be sent to Rwanda.
On Tuesday, Sunak said he had been caught off guard by the offer of the bet, but stopped short of admitting it was a mistake.
"I am not a betting person, and I was taken totally by surprise in that interview," he told the BBC. "The point I was trying to get across – I was taken totally by surprise – was actually about the Rwanda policy and about tackling illegal migration, which is something I care deeply about."
So far, no asylum seekers have been sent to Rwanda because the plan has been blocked by the courts.
The government is currently trying to pass legislation through parliament that would declare Rwanda a safe country for asylum seekers in an effort to overcome the legal block by the courts.
The opposition Labour Party said the bet made by the wealthiest British prime minister showed he did not understand the challenges faced by voters facing rising mortgages and food bills, while a senior politician in the Scottish National Party called the bet "depraved".
Asked if he understood the financial pressures facing ordinary households, Sunak said first priority was reducing inflation because the cost of living crisis was the most pressing problem most families faced.
($1 = 0.7967 pounds)
(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill; Editing by Alistair Smout)
