Rwanda flights will continue 'indefinitely' until the small boats are stopped, ... trends now

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Rwanda removal flights will continue 'indefinitely' until migrants stop crossing the Channel by small boat, the Home Secretary vowed last night.

James Cleverly insisted that the Home Office's behind-the-scenes planning to initiate the scheme was 'robust' – and confirmed a number of flights had already been booked.

He made his most detailed remarks yet about the impending launch of the Rwanda scheme during a visit to Lampedusa, the tiny Italian island in the southern Mediterranean which lies on the front line of illegal migration from North Africa.

His comments came as it emerged that police had arrested three men over the deaths of five migrants, including a child, who drowned attempting to cross the Channel from France.

The men – two Sudanese nationals aged 22 and 19, and a South Sudan national aged 22 – were detained on Tuesday night, the National Crime Agency said.