London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Jul 01, 2025

Home Office staff threaten mutiny over ‘shameful’ Rwanda asylum deal

Home Office staff threaten mutiny over ‘shameful’ Rwanda asylum deal

On an intranet noticeboard civil servants drew a comparison with serving under Adolf Hitler, and asked if they had a duty to ‘resist’
Home Office staff have threatened to strike and drawn comparisons to working for the Third Reich over Priti Patel’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, it has emerged.

Comments on an internal online noticeboard include calls for industrial action to stop the policy and concern from a staff member of 20 years who feels “deep shame” and is considering their position.

One anonymous civil servant drew a comparison to serving under Adolf Hitler. In a reference to the post-second world war Nazi trials at Nuremberg, they wrote: “The words ‘I was only obeying orders’ are echoing down through history to me and making me queasy.” They were later chastised by a colleague for making “absurd comparisons”.

It comes as a Conservative MP challenged the government’s plan to build a processing centre for asylum seekers in a small North Yorkshire village.

The internal comments, first disclosed by Mail+, reveal that dozens of staff have voiced their opposition to the agreement with Rwanda, which was signed off by the home secretary this week and has been applauded by Boris Johnson.

One Home Office staff member asked whether staff would have a duty to campaign against the policy. “Do we have a responsibility to not just leave, but to organise and resist? We cannot simply wash our hands and walk away,” they wrote. Another asked: “I find the government proposal totally unethical and it impacts directly upon my workstream. As a civil servant can I refuse this type of work in contravention of my own ethics?”

Another said: “I’ve worked for the Home Office for 20 years. There’s been some ups and downs in that time. But this announcement has made me feel deep shame and is the first time I am considering my position here and whether I need to get out of this department.”

Another stated: “Can the permanent secretary and seniors give staff any advice on coping with our conscience with these sort of policies? I don’t feel safe telling people I work for the Home Office any more and now just make up a nondescript role in another government department when asked what I do for a job.”

The report has been confirmed as accurate by a Home Office source. The comments will be put to the Home Office permanent secretary, Matthew Rycroft, during an online group call for staff on Thursday.

In a further development, the local Tory MP has challenged plans for a new centre at the former RAF base Linton-on-Ouse, announced as part of the government’s new migration measures.

Kevin Hollinrake, representing Thirsk and Malton, initially suggested he was sympathetic to the plans.

But on Wednesday, after meeting Patel, he called for the proposal to be reversed and threatened to support a judicial review if it is not.

“The current proposal of 1,500 young men in an open camp in the heart of a small rural village is not workable, sustainable or acceptable,” wrote Hollinrake in a letter to the home secretary. “It simply cannot be that availability of a site dictates the appropriateness of the location,” he said.

Some Conservative MPs raised concerns over the Rwanda policy on Wednesday as they debated the government motion to disagree with Lords’ amendments to the nationality and borders bill.

Simon Hoare, the MP for North Dorset, said: “A safe route clearly would kill the evil traffic of people-smuggling at a stroke. That’s one way of dealing with it.

“I fail to see how moving people to Rwanda is going to in any way disrupt this money-making scheme which these people traffickers have. They’re just going to use different routes to land people on our shores. I’m just not getting it, I’m afraid.”

The Conservative former minister Sir Bob Neill suggested using the £120m paid initially to the Rwandan government to improve the UK’s system for handling claims.

“Can I make the point that the salary of an immigration tribunal judge, first tier tribunal judge, is £117,000. If you put on costs, even most generously, that’s about £200,000.

“Look at the £120m so far committed to the Rwanda scheme; there’s about 600 first tier tribunal judges could be bought for that, or any number of hundreds of Home Office case workers. Would that not be an alternative, actually to invest in the current system? … That would be a constructive alternative, surely,” he said.

Tom Pursglove, the junior migration minister, replied: “That of itself will not solve this issue and I genuinely believe that the approach that we are taking through the comprehensive plan will shift the dial, will change the dynamic and will ultimately help us to shut down these evil criminal networks.”

A Home Office spokesperson, said: “The Home Office is committed to constructive and open conversations with staff on our policies. However, personal attacks are unacceptable and we will remove comments from our channels that are disrespectful, break our guidelines or contravene the Civil Service values of integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
Trump Administration Considers Withdrawal of Funding for Hospitals Providing Gender Treatment to Minors
Texas Enacts Law Allowing Gold and Silver Transactions
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
OpenAI Secures Multimillion-Dollar AI Contracts with Pentagon, India, and Grab
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Elon Musk Critiques Senate Budget Proposal Over Job Losses and Strategic Risks
Los Angeles Riots ended with Federal Investigations into Funding
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Education Secretary Announces Overhaul of Complaints System Amid Rising Parental Grievances
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Trump Ends Trade Talks with Canada Over Digital Services Tax
UK Government Softens Welfare Reform Plans Amid Labour Party Rebellion
Labour Faces Rebellion Over Disability Benefit Reforms Ahead of Key Vote
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Host Lavish Wedding in Venice Amid Protests
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
North Korea to Open New Beach Resort to Boost Tourism Economy
UK Labour Party Faces Internal Tensions Over Welfare Reforms
Andrew Cuomo Hints at Potential November Comeback Amid Democratic Primary Results
Curtis Sliwa Champions His Vision for New York City Amid Rising Crime Concerns
Federal Reserve Proposes Changes to Capital Rule Affecting Major Banks
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Trump Escalates Criticism of Media Over Iran Strike Coverage
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
Big Four Accounting Firms Fined in Exam Cheating Scandal
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
Australia's Star Casino Secures $195 Million Rescue Package Amid Challenges
UK to Enhance Nuclear Capabilities with Acquisition of F-35A Fighter Jets
Russian Shadow Payments via Cryptocurrency Reach $9 Billion
Explosions Rock Doha as Iranian Missiles Target Qatar
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Airlines Evaluate Flight Cancellations Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions
Starmer Invites Innovators to Join Government Talent Scheme
UK Economy’s Strong Opening Quarter Shows Signs of Cooling
Harrods Seeks Court Order to Secure Al Fayed Estate for Victims
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
×