Rwanda is an unfortunate venue for Prince Charles and Boris Johnson’s Commonwealth meeting

It is customary at a Commonwealth heads of government meeting (CHOGM) for the Queen, or in this case the Prince of Wales, to have an audience with the prime minister of the nation where she is still head of state.

The premiers of Belize, Canada, Jamaica, Papua New Guinea and the rest will no doubt enjoy their little chats with Prince Charles. The prime minister of the United Kingdom will probably find himself in a more “appalling” situation.

By unhappy coincidence, CHOGM is being held in Kigali, capital of Rwanda, one of the Commonwealth’s newest members. Though it lacks any colonial links to Britain (it was exploited by Germany and then Belgium), Rwanda’s membership demonstrates that the Commonwealth is still a useful club for a developing nation.

However, Rwanda is intended to be the final destination for, eventually, many thousands of asylum seekers who come to Britain seeking shelter and a new life. Whether they are genuine refugees or not, no one, not even those granted refugee status, will be permitted to return to the UK. It is this that the Prince of Wales reportedly found appalling, a view shared by many church leaders and indeed many citizens with no particular affection for the monarchy.

Boris Johnson is unlikely to pay the heir to the throne much heed, and will find a ready ally in Paul Kagame, president since 2000, who values the funding and development assistance the British are providing in return for Rwandan cooperation.

It is a grubby deal, and one that dishonours both nations. In Rwanda’s case, the British refugee deportation plan actually harms the nation’s reputation and sets back its efforts to put its past of genocide and human rights behind it. Rwanda is right to strive to be a prosperous and safe haven for people who suffered in the same manner as so many Rwandans did during the genocide in 1994 – but it should do so only for people who actually want to settle in Rwanda.

Surely one of the most basic of human rights is not to be transferred against your will to somewhere entirely alien and unsuitable? Rwanda should have no part in such an inhumane and impractical policy. Perhaps Prince Charles will make such points to President Kagame when the opportunity arises.

To keep up to speed with all the latest opinions and comment, sign up to our free weekly Voices Dispatches newsletter by clicking here

In any case, making certain assumptions, Mr Johnson and Charles will have to spend much more time with each other and will have to work together in the usual way a head of state and prime minister should.

However, while Prince Charles and Mr Johnson agree on many issues, such as climate change and the preservation of fox hunting, their general outlook on issues such as migration is obviously very different. Even though the prince has the better of the argument, and is perfectly entitled to voice his opinions in private and directly to the prime minister, it is simply unconstitutional for him to try to exert anything more than mild influence on policy, to the level that any lay person might if the prime minister dropped by for tea.

Prince Charles, who has been confirmed as the next head of the Commonwealth, would do well to follow the example his mother and grandfather generally set when he interacts with all of his prime ministers. Anything else would be fairly appalling.