Robert Jenrick answers YOUR questions – including Biden v Trump, his Rwanda hol with Suella & secret behind his glow up
ROBERT Jenrick opened about his holiday to Rwanda with Suella Braverman and the reason behind his sensational glow up.
The former immigration minister also confessed he has steered away from illegal drugs his entire life and that he would back Donald Trump‘s return to the White House.
The revelations were made as he candidly answered quick fire questions from Sun readers on our new show Never Mind The Ballots.
Mr Jenrick quit his job in Government last year, citing “strong disagreements” over the Rwanda deportation policy for illegal migrants.
He believed the Rwanda Bill – which attempts to overcome the Supreme Court block – did not “go far enough”.
WATCH NEVER MIND THE BALLOTS
ROBERT Jenrick will be facing questions from Sun readers during a no holds barred guest spot on our new politics show tonight.
The weekly show also features opinions and insight from our very own panel boasting real-life experience, discussing what readers want from the next Government
You can watch the ex-Immigration Secretary on thesun.co.uk and The Sun’s YouTube channel at 7pm on Wednesday
And you can help set the agenda – by submitting your questions via email at readerquestions@the-sun.co.uk
Ex-PM Liz Truss will also face a grilling on our show tonight.
Never Mind the Ballots is available to watch now on thesun.co.uk and The Sun’s YouTube channel.
Asked if he would take his family on holiday to Rwanda, Mr Jenrick said: “Yes. I’ve been on holiday to Rwanda, I went with Suella Braverman twenty years ago.
“It’s a great country and I have complete confidence that it’s safe. It is one of the most dynamic countries in Africa.”
Once a Remainer, he said he would vote for Brexit if he could today, adding: “We are in a far better place being in complete control of our borders.”
Asked what is behind his physical transformation, Mr Jenrick said: “It turns out if you eat less and do more exercise you look trimmer.”
A new trendy haircut in the style of Roman Emperor Julius Caesar late last year sparked rumours the Tory MP was harbouring leadership ambitions.
To the question Trump or Biden, Mr Jenrick simply replied with “Trump”.
The Newark MP also tackled the unflattering nickname “Robert Generic” reportedly bestowed upon him a decade ago.
He said: “I don’t think that was fair back then. I certainly don’t think it is far today. Not many people resign on a matter of principle from Cabinet.
“People can see there are issues whether it’s housing, immigration, ensuring Net Zero is approached in a far less zealous manner than we are doing today where I am trying to make big arguments.”
I DID paint over Mickey Mouse, says Jenrick
ROBERT Jenrick admitted the decision to have cartoon murals painted over at a children's asylum centre was a mistake.
The former immigration minister insisted he would not want to treat kids in anything other than a “compassionate” or fair” manner.
Be he stressed the number of adults “coming into our country illegally who pose as children” is still concerning.
Mr Jenrick came under fire in summer 2023 after artwork depicting Mickey Mouse and Tom and Jerry was removed at a unit for lone child asylum seekers.
He had reportedly felt they were too “welcoming”, although he told Parliament they were painted over because they were not “age appropriate” for the majority of the young people staying there.
Speaking to The Sun’s Never Mind The Ballots, he said: “It did happen. It wasn’t exactly like that. What I wanted to ensure and I still believe this is right, is that not children, but adults, if you break into our country then that should be treated with all due seriousness.
“That is a crime, those places should be places of law enforcement.”
Asked he regretted the decision, he said: “Yes, I don’t want to treat children in anything other than a compassionate and fair manner.
“I was and remain very concerned about the number of adults coming into our country illegally who pose as children. Remember most of people passing through those places when I was there were 17 year-old Albanians. That’s a threat to children.”
Also on tonight’s episode of Never Mind the Ballots, Jenrick blasted the meddling European Court as beyond redemption.
He urged Rishi Sunak to make an election pledge to leave Strasbourg’s jurisdiction to stand any hope of closing the gap on Labour.
He said: “It was born of noble intentions after the defeat of fascism by people like Winston Churchill.
“But Winston Churchill would be aghast with what has happened to it today where it has been contorted by activist judges.”
It is the first time Mr Jenrick – a standard-bearer for the Tory right – has explicitly called for the European Court of Human Rights to be on the ballot.
He joins a growing number of Conservative MPs demanding Britain ends its 71-year membership of the Court over fears it is thwarting efforts to stop small boats.
Mr Sunak has vowed to leave if necessary to tackle illegal migration, but has stopped short of an immediate commitment to cut ties.
And Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron only yesterday stressed the need for reform to curb “overreach” by judges.
But dismissing such attempts as doomed, Mr Jenrick said: “I dont think it’s possible to reform the ECHR. I think that would be doomed to fail.
“Like David Cameron’s attempt to renegotiate our relationship with the EU. The question we’ve got to ask ourselves is does staying in ECHR make us safer?”
When will Rwanda flights take off?
What is the Rwanda plan?
Under the plan, anyone who arrives in Britain illegally will be deported to Rwanda, a country in eastern Africa.
The government believes the threat of being removed to Rwanda will deter migrants from making the dangerous Channel crossing in small boats.
Once in Rwanda, their asylum claims will be processed but there is no route back to the UK, save for some exceptional circumstances such as individual safety concerns. Britain will pay for migrants to start a new life in Rwanda.
What’s the hold up?
First announced by Boris Johnson in 2022, the scheme has been bogged down by relentless legal challenges.
The first flight was due to take off in summer 2022, but was blocked on the runway at the last minute by a European Court order.
Since then the legality of the plan has been contested in the courts, culminating in a Supreme Court judgement in November last year which said Rwanda was unsafe for asylum seekers.
What is Sunak doing?
To salvage the Rwanda plan from the Supreme Court’s scathing ruling, Rishi Sunak announced a two-pronged workaround.
First, he would sign a new treaty with Rwanda to beef up protections for asylum seekers that will be enshrined in law.
Second, he would introduce new legislation that would declare Rwanda a safe country.
It would mean courts, police and officials would have to treat it as safe unless there is a risk of individual and irreparable harm.
How long will that take?
The legislation has cleared the Commons but is now being held up in the House of Lords.
Rishi Sunak does not have a majority in the Lords, and peers are far more hostile to the plan.
They will likely send it back to the Commons with amendments watering down the scheme.
Such changes would be unconscionable to MPs who would strip out the measures and send it back.
This “ping-pong” will continue until either side – usually the unelected Lords – gives in and the Bill passes.
When will flights take off?
Mr Sunak wants to get the first flights sent to Rwanda by the spring.
But potential hurdles include more court battles launched by individual migrants either in UK courts or the European Court of Human Rights.
Mr Sunak has vowed to ignore any more orders by Strasbourg judges to ground planes, although individual appeals in domestic courts could prove tricky.
Sir Keir Starmer has said he will scrap the scheme if he is elected PM, even if it is working.