EU group backed by von der Leyen plans Rwanda-style migration reforms

Centre-right European People’s party says it wants to create deportation deals with non-EU countries to head off rise of far right

A group of political parties backing Ursula von der Leyen for a second term in one of the most powerful jobs in Brussels at the head of the European Commission is planning to call for further migration reforms, similar to the UK’s Rwanda policy, to head off the rise of the far right.

The European People’s party (EPP), an umbrella group of centre-right and conservative parties, has said in the final draft of its manifesto ahead of elections to the European parliament in May that it wants a series of deal with non-EU countries with a view to deporting irregular migrants for asylum processing in “safe” third countries.