A little bit earlier we heard from former immigration minister Robert Jenrick, who quit in December last year over the government's Rwanda bill. He said at the time he didn't believe it was strong enough.
Now, his focus is on legal immigration.
He says the numbers of people coming to the country are "so great" that they are putting "immense pressure" on houses, services and community cohesion, and immigration isn't making the country any richer.
"The only way to end this is to set a cap," he says but doesn't give a number.
Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, he says migration should be capped at the "tens of thousands" to restore trust.
Home Office minister Chris Philp was also asked about the government's plans for migration earlier in the programme.
Philp has said the government are "taking measures" to "reduce legal migration by about 300,000 a year".
This is the moment that Patrick Harvie sealed his party’s fate and set in motion a chain of events that would see the Greens kicked out of government and Humza Yousaf fighting for his job.
The Sunday Mail can reveal that just hours after the car crash BBC interview where he trashed Dr Hilary Cass’ report into gender identity services, Alba MSP Ash Regan’s vote of no confidence in Harvie was destabilising the First Minister’s position.
Humza Yousaf discovered she had backing from a number of SNP backbenchers and with Westminster leader Stephen Flynn heading to Edinburgh for urgent talks, he was forced to act to save his political life.
A senior SNP source said: “Harvie is clearly raging at what he believes has been a betrayal of his party by Yousaf but the truth is that he did this to himself with his completely unacceptable comments on the Cass report.
“Ash Regan’s motion of no confidence was going to get significant support including from a sizable rebellion of SNP MSPs, it was going to lead to a vote in parliament and Humza’s position if he continued to support Harvie and the Greens deal would have become untenable.
“The FM had absolutely no choice but to take steps to end the Bute House agreement, it was just a matter of how he did it.
“By sacking the Greens in the most humiliating manner possible he has clearly enraged Harvie so much that he now wants to destroy the First Minister at all costs.
“A smarter strategy could have been to put the Bute House Agreement to an SNP vote in the same way that the Greens were preparing to vote on it, but one way or another it was dead in the water.”
Humza Yousaf confirmed he had terminated the Bute House Agreement.
Yousaf was relaxing with his family last Sunday having faced one of the most difficult weeks since becoming Scotland’s First Minister.
The former chief executive of his party, Peter Murrell, had been arrested and charged with embezzling party funds; he was forced to admit his government had hugely over-promised on climate targets; and his junior government partners were planning a vote on the future of their landmark powersharing agreement.
At a meeting of the SNP’s ruling body on the Saturday he told senior figures he wanted to keep the Bute House Agreement and did not want to give SNP members a vote on the deal.
A source at that meeting said: “A number of us wanted to put it to a vote of our own membership. Humza said ‘No, I’m not considering that, I’m fully committed to the Greens and asking the question would open us up to criticism and make it a story.’
“He was really in support of the cooperation agreement which is why this was all the more baffling for everyone.”
MSP Ash Regan could hold a vote crucial to Mr Yousaf’s future (Image: PA)
But less than 24 hours after Yousaf’s assurances to colleagues, Harvie refused to back world leading paediatrician Dr Hilary Cass’s report where she found there was remarkably weak evidence to support puberty treatment for children. He told the Sunday Show, the report had “clearly been politicised” and suggested that there was “far too many criticisms of the report to be able to say” that he agreed with its findings.
Women’s rights campaigner Regan, the sole MSP in the Alex Salmond’s Alba party, had resigned from SNP frontbench last year over the Gender Recognition Reform bill and Self ID. She accused Harvie of “siding with ideology over evidence” by refusing to accept the report’s recommendations which urged extreme caution over puberty blocking drugs for gender questioning children.
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The MSP tabled a motion of no confidence in Harvie the following day. On Tuesday Yousaf was praising the Green agreement as “worth its weight in gold” but by Wednesday it became clear that SNP rebels were lining up to back their former colleague.
While Harvie and his Green colleagues were joking around in the Holyrood canteen, Stephen Flynn, the SNP’s Westminster leader, was on his way to Edinburgh for crunch talks.
Stephen Flynn, SNP Westminster leader.
Flynn’s intervention, along with input from Yousaf’s chief special advisor Colin McAllister, was instrumental in convincing the FM to tear up the Bute House Agreement and take ruthless measures against Harvie and co-leader Lorna Slater.
Another SNP source said: “Flynn came into Holyrood for a coffee on Wednesday afternoon, which is what played a big part in the way Humza handled the Greens by marching them in to Bute House on Thursday morning.
“Flynn was no fan of the agreement and he made that very clear. He wanted shot of it because he thought it was seriously harming the SNP’s election chances at Westminster.
“He wants more investment in oil and gas and also wants action on the A96 - both of which the Greens are against.”
Yet Flynn’s intervention has sparked another rift in the party.
One SNP MSP said “Stephen Flynn’s involvement has also left quite a few of us with little time for the Westminster group.
“Look at it this way, Humza attacks Labour for taking orders from Westminster when he’s just done the exact same thing. It’s hypocritical and weak.”
A group meeting on Thursday night of SNP MSPs was described by one attendee as “not in the top 10 worst meetings we’ve had”.
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While not all 63 MSPs turned up, those that did are in shock or concerned about Yousaf’s decisions.
Nicola Sturgeon’s ex sidekick and senior Nationalist John Swinney was trying to bring people together while Yousaf tried to convince his party the change in direction was a positive one.
While the First Minister might just survive this week’s vote of no confidence it now looks as though divisions in the party are running deep, many believe his days in Bute House are now numbered.
Police have taped off a park in Salford as the search continues in a gruesome murder probe.
A police cordon has been put in place at Blackleach Country Park in Walkden. The Manchester Evening News understands that this is part of an investigation launched earlier this month after body parts wrapped in cellophane were found at Kersal Dale by a passer-by.
Two men were arrested earlier this week following the discovery of the human remains at the nature reserve in Salford on April 4. It came after a passer-by found, in plain sight, the lower back, buttocks, and a thigh of a man wrapped in cellophane, near a footpath.
The victim was white and believed to be aged 40-plus. Police are still questioning the men who were arrested on Thursday (April 25).
Police tapped off Blackleach Country Park on Saturday afternoon (April 27). Local residents claim divers were seen entering the water.
The M.E.N. understands that the search is part of GMP's Kersal Dale murder investigation. It follows a 12-day search of Kersal Dale and nearby Kersal Wetlands with 100 GMP officers deployed and another search last weekend following reports of a pungent odour.
The smell which prompted police to resume their search was later found to be sulphur. No further body parts have been found.
The reservoir at Blackleach Country Park remains taped off this morning (April 28). Police are expected to continue their search throughout the day.
Follow our live blog below for the latest updates as we get them.
An increasingly bitter split between the SNP and the Greens has brought even more Scottish parliamentary seats into play for Keir Starmer, Labour figures believe, amid a desperate fight by the first minister, Humza Yousaf, to stay in power.
Yousaf has already refused to rule out a Holyrood election as he faces damaging no-confidence motions this week. On Saturday he wrote to the leaders of Scotland’s political parties in an attempt to find “common ground” following his decision to axe a coalition with the Scottish Greens that had propped up his government. Yousaf maintained that it would be a “poor choice” for the Greens to back a no-confidence motion in his minority government.
However, hopes are growing among Labour insiders that the fallout between the SNP and the Greens could have serious consequences for the forthcoming Westminster general election. They believe the split could dent any prospect of the Greens helping the SNP by not running a candidate in some seats – or soft-pedalling during the election to help their former coalition partners.
That could bring more seats into play for Labour should the SNP vote be suppressed. “The two parties were very cooperative,” said a source. “There was always a risk that, in the UK general election, there were some constituencies where the Greens might not stand in order to help the SNP hold on. Clearly, that’s not going to happen now. That kind of splintering of the coalition could help Labour in a few seats.”
Insiders said it could have consequences in crucial seats around Glasgow. Labour’s polling performance has also seen the party’s ambitions grow. It now hopes to be competitive in seats such as East Renfrewshire, where it came a distant third at the last election.
It comes with the fallout still unfolding from Yousaf’s decision to end the SNP’s historic coalition with the Greens. His fate could yet come down to whether or not he is supported by the Alba party’s Ash Regan. When she defected from the SNP, Yousaf described her departure as “no great loss”.
Her vote may now be crucial in forthcoming confidence votes in Yousaf and his government. The ruling body of the pro-independence Alba party, led by the former first minister Alex Salmond, is holding meetings this weekend to discuss its next moves and how Regan will vote.
Alba’s Westminster leader, Neale Hanvey, said on Saturday that the party is “not saying we are going to save Humza Yousaf” but is willing to listen to what he has to say.
He told Times Radio: “We’re not saying we are going to save Humza Yousaf. The situation that Humza Yousaf has got himself into is a matter of his own making. And, you know, there is a range of views around whether he will be able to tough it out or whether he’s already toast.”
Hanvey added: “We’re willing to listen to what he has to say but we have come to absolutely no firm conclusion about whether we’re going to support him or not.”
With pressure on him building, the first minister is now attempting to build bridges with the other political parties at Holyrood, via a series of emergency meetings at his official residence.
Yousaf plans to meet each group at Bute House in Edinburgh to discuss how they can “contribute constructively”.
His future is now linked to two forthcoming no-confidence votes tabled by Labour and the Conservatives. He said it would be a “poor choice” for the Scottish Greens to back such a motion.
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Rishi Sunak has pounced on claims that migrants are heading to Ireland from the UK over fears of being sent to Rwanda as evidence that his deportation plan is working - despite no flights having taken off.
Deputy Irish premier Michael Martin claimed on Friday there had been a rise in migrants crossing the border from Northern Ireland into the Republic over fears of being sent on a one-way flight to the east African nation under Mr Sunak's flagship policy.
The prime minister responded on Saturday claiming that this was evidence that the deterrent effect of the Rwanda plan was “already having an impact”. This is despite not a single flight having left for Rwanda since the plan was proposed more than two years ago.
The legislation ensuring the plan is legally sound, the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Act, cleared its passage through parliament this week and was signed into law on Thursday. But Mr Sunak acknowledged it could still take 10 to 12 weeks to get flights in the air, in a blow to his earlier target of spring of this year.
In an interview with Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, which will air in full on Sunday, the prime minister was challenged over whether the UK is simply exporting the problem.
Mr Sunak said: “My focus is on the United Kingdom and securing our borders. But what [Mr Martin’s] comment illustrates is a couple of things.
“One, that illegal migration is a global challenge, which is why you’re seeing multiple countries talk about doing third country partnerships, looking at novel ways to solve this problem, and I believe will follow where the UK has led.
“But what it also shows, I think, is that the deterrent is, according to your comment, already having an impact because people are worried about coming here and that demonstrates exactly what I’m saying.
“If people come to our country illegally, but know that they won’t be able to stay, they’re much less likely to come, and that’s why the Rwanda scheme is so important.”
Migrants wave to a smuggler's boat in an attempt to cross the English Channel, on the beach of Gravelines, near Dunkirk (AFP via Getty Images)
It comes after Mr Martin told The Telegraph that the Rwanda policy was already affecting Ireland because people were “fearful” of staying in Britain.
He said asylum seekers were seeking “to get sanctuary here and within the European Union as opposed to the potential of being deported to Rwanda”.
The border between Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK, and the Republic of Ireland, a European Union member, is the only land border between the UK and the EU since Britain left the bloc.
Ministers plan to send asylum seekers coming to the UK on a flight to the east African nation, with the aim of deterring others from crossing the English Channel on small boats.
Downing Street on Friday rebuffed claims the Rwanda plan was already influencing movements into Ireland, saying it was too early to jump to conclusions on its impact.
A No 10 spokesperson said: “It is too early to jump to specific conclusions about the impact of the Act and treaty in terms of migrant behaviour.
“Of course, we will monitor this very closely and we already work very closely as you would expect with the Irish government, including on matters relating to asylum.
“But of course, the intention behind the Act is to have it serve as a deterrent and that is why we are working to get flights off the ground as swiftly as possible.”
Mr Martin, who also serves as Ireland’s foreign affairs minister, told reporters in Dublin that there was a “clear … increase in numbers” and suggested the Rwanda policy was a “fairly obvious” cause.
Irish ministers earlier this week suggested there had been a rise in the number of migrants crossing the land border between Northern Ireland and the Republic.
Justice minister Helen McEntee told a committee of the Irish Parliament the number was now “higher than 80 per cent” crossing from Northern Ireland.
Scotland's First Minister Humza Yousaf claims a Holyrood election could be called as he refuses to say if he will resign if he loses a looming vote of no confidence.
Speaking exclusively to Sky News in Fife on Saturday, the SNP leader said it was "really disappointing" to learn the Greens will refuse to enter further talks to change their minds on voting against him in a ballot which could prove fatal for his leadership.
Mr Yousaf has today written to all the opposition parties, including Alex Salmond's Alba party, at Holyrood urging them to rethink their plot to oust him.
Image:Humza Yousaf
The SNP leader said on Saturday that he was leaving it to his rivals to determine his fate.
A Green Party source said the only letter they will accept from the first minister is his resignation.
Mr Yousaf told Sky News: "Well let me say again, that would be really disappointing if that is the Greens' position.
"As I say, I've reached out to them, they are saying publicly that they're going to support a Conservative motion against independence, first minister and independence government.
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"That would be, I think, a poor choice to make."
Asked if there might be a Scottish election if he doesn't win the vote, Mr Yousaf replied: "Can't rule it out."
Sky News understands Alba is holding an emergency meeting this weekend to determine how it will cast the key vote.
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2:22
Yousaf to 'fight' no confidence vote
When asked how SNP members would feel about being "propped up" by Mr Salmond, Mr Yousaf said: "Let me make it really, really clear, I'll be sending out to anybody I meet with, whoever comes round that table, that these are the priorities of the SNP minority government.
"This is what we'll be pursuing, this is what we'll be pushing. It'll then be up to be it Ash Regan, be it Lorna Slater, be it Patrick Harvie or any of them, to decide what button they push when it comes to the vote of no confidence."
The now-cancelled CAA event had been arranged after the organisation’s founder, Gideon Falter, was threatened with arrest at a pro-Palestinian demonstration earlier this month, with one officer describing Mr Falter, who was wearing a kippah, as “openly Jewish”.
