London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

No bribe no job: Refugees minister who refused to endorse Rwanda policy quits

No bribe no job: Refugees minister who refused to endorse Rwanda policy quits

Richard Harrington declares his job ‘essentially complete’ day before Liz Truss expected to be named new PM and move forward the bribery-based Rwanda deal.
Richard Harrington, who distanced himself from the government’s policy of sending migrants to Rwanda, has quit as refugees minister a day before Liz Truss is expected to be confirmed as the next prime minister.

He claimed he was stepping down because his job was essentially complete, but the timing of his departure suggests he expected his role was not likely to be renewed by the incoming administration.

In private Lord Harrington has made no secret of his disdain for the Rwanda policy that Truss and Rishi Sunak have enthusiastically backed during the Tory leadership contest.

In public Harrington declined to endorse the policy. In a Times Radio interview shortly after the policy was announced, he refused three times to say whether he was comfortable with putting refugees who cross the Channel on a one-way flight to Rwanda.

In his resignation letter Harrington said his decision was no reflection on Truss or Sunak.

He said: “I’m not walking out on the role or either candidate, and will continue to support where helpful. But what I was specifically asked to do is essentially complete so it seems right that I make clear to both leadership contenders that they may be able to save on a ministerial post when they take over.”

The Refugee Council said it would be a “backward step” if the new administration failed to appoint a replacement. It said there was much more to be done, particularly on resettling Afghans and Ukrainians.

Harrington was only appointed as refugees minister in March, working in the department for levelling up, with particular responsibility for resettling Ukrainians, Afghans and people from Hong Kong.

Despite his responsibilities for refugees from other countries, in his resignation letter Harrington said he was “brought in to do a very specific job, which was to set up working machinery across government to deal with helping the Ukrainians in need.

“I believe we now have a process and procedure in place that means there won’t necessarily be the need for a minister like myself.”

The former Conservative MP for Watford said he had spoken to No 10, Truss and Sunak before publicly confirming his decision.

Enver Solomon, the chief executive of the Refugee Council, said: “I think it’s surprising that he feels the job is done.

“We’ve got thousands of Afghans in hotels, and we’ve got much work to do on ensuring that Ukrainians are not left homeless after the six-month point where hosts can ask them to move on.”

Solomon added: “We welcomed the creation of a minister for refugees. And there’s still much to be done by a minister taking the lead on providing a joined-up approach to housing and the integration policy for refugees. Not having a minister for refugees would be a step backward – it would be a big gap in government.”

His stance was echoed by charity Reset, one of the government’s providers for the Homes for Ukraine scheme. Its CEO, Kate Brown, said: “Lord Harrington has championed the scheme and been positive about community-led refugee welcome. We hope the new prime minister appoints someone who is equally passionate about supporting Ukrainians to come to the UK. Now, more than ever, the UK needs to show leadership in this area.”

More than 100,000 Ukrainians have arrived in the UK since Russian’s invasion in February.

Tory MPs paid tribute to Harrington on Sunday, with the former health secretary Sajid Javid tweeting: “I saw first hand how you did a brilliant job, helping thousands of desperate people. Thank you.”

And Caroline Nokes tweeted: “You worked so hard on this Richard and I have always welcomed your willingness to engage and discuss all the challenges for refugees.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
After 200,000 Orders in 2 Minutes: Xiaomi Accelerates Marketing in Europe
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
×