People waiting in France for the end of the Rwanda scheme before coming to Britain is “evidence of the deterrent effect” of the plan, Home Office minister Michael Tomlinson has said.

He told Times Radio: “The deterrent is not fully in place, but we’re already seeing the effects of that deterrent, and we’ve seen overnight the breaking news from the Telegraph on the front pages, where there are those who are in northern France, who are waiting, delaying their journey because they do not like the Rwanda scheme, they do not want to be deported to Rwanda.

“And people have been asking me for weeks, for months, where is the evidence of the deterrent effect? Well, there it is, writ large.

“We saw last month when the Rwanda Act was passed, we saw migrants moving from the United Kingdom into Ireland, we’ve got the evidence literally overnight, from those in northern France.

“And then, of course, if we vote for the Conservative Party on the fourth of July, the planes are booked, the airstrip is ready, and the planes will take off, and that’s when the full deterrent effect will kick in.”