Douglas Ross has said he will back Rishi Sunak’s emergency Rwanda plan legislation in what could be a make-or-break vote for the beleaguered Prime Minister.

The Scottish Conservative leader, who is both an MP and an MSP, said something needed to be done to stop people crossing the channel and risking their lives.

READ MORE: Rishi Sunak defends Rwanda policy as Tories split over Bill

The Tories are in turmoil over the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill.

On Wednesday night, Robert Jenrick quit as immigration minister, saying the plan did “not go far enough. ”

He and others on the right of the party want the Bill — which legally declares Rwanda to be a safe country — to close off all possible grounds of challenge under either national or international law.

Earlier in the day, former home secretary Suella Braverman told the BBC that the Bill in its current state would fail.

She said that in the “very litigious field” of asylum law “the reality is and the sorry truth is that it won’t work and it will not stop the boats”.

There are also reportedly concerns from more moderate Tory backbenchers.

Pressed on whether he would call a general election if he could not get the legislation through parliament, Mr Sunak said: “We’ve got to finish the job and I’m going to see this thing through.

“I’m confident I can get this thing done.”

READ MORE: UK Covid inquiry: Boris Johnson defends 'let it rip'comments

Speaking to journalists in Holyrood, Mr Ross confirmed he would back the Bill on Tuesday.

He said there had been “far too many lives lost in the English Channel”.

He added: “It’s absolutely vital that we use every policy available to prevent people from making an extremely dangerous crossing – we see far too many lives lost in the English Channel.

“That’s why the Prime Minister has looked at the ruling from the Supreme Court, he’s looked at the legislation that can be brought through the UK Parliament to deter people from making that dangerous crossing, from putting their life at risk and also to ensure the people that benefit from this currently – the people smugglers – that route is stopped from them.

“I will be supporting the Bill when it comes to Parliament.”

During First Minister’s Questions, Humza Yousaf said it was a “dark day” for the UK.

“A country that once welcomed immigrants, including my grandfather to the country, in fact, begged him to come and others to come to work in their factories, to drive buses, due to the labour shortages that were seen at that time.”

Mr Yousaf said: “What successive UK governments have done – Labour and Conservatives – is they have, bit by bit, dismantled our immigration and indeed our asylum processes.

“On immigration, the latest announcements mean that we’re asking – the UK Government is asking – migrants to come here to look after our own family members but doing so by abandoning their own family members back home.

“On asylum, the UK Government has virtually eliminated any practical legal route for those that are fleeing war or persecution.

“The policies of the UK Government in this respect are not only morally repugnant, but they are economically illiterate."

READ MORE: Humza Yousaf grilled over Scottish education

The scale of unease over the Rwanda plan has led to speculation that unhappy MPs could submit letters to the chair of the backbench 1922 committee asking for a vote of no confidence. 

Under party rules, that would require 53 Tory MPs to trigger.

Cabinet minister Chris Heaton-Harris played down that prospect, telling LBC: “I think it’s highly unlikely, very unlikely. I’d say vanishingly small.”