Suella Braverman will be a guest speaker for local Conservative Party members next week [Home Office]

TORY party members are snapping up £30 tickets for a guest appearance by Suella Braverman, the home secretary who said she dreams of a Daily Telegraph front page about immigrants being flown out of the UK and off to Rwanda.

The hard-liner’s special invitation comes just after local Conservatives joined a unanimous vote in the Town Hall chamber to declare Camden as a “borough of sanctuary” for refugees.

The Liberal Democrat opposition accused the Tory group of hypocrisy for voting in favour of a motion to extend a warm welcome to those trying to reach the UK – while getting ready to enjoy an evening with Ms Braverman.

At the Conservative party conference, she was asked about the asylum system and told delegates: “I would love to be here claiming victory. I would love to be having a front page of the Telegraph with a plane taking off to Rwanda. That’s my dream – it’s an obsession.”

The leader of the opposition, Councillor Tom Simon, speaking at last week’s meeting on refugees

Later, she stoked further controversy – and was told she was whipping up dangerous rhetoric – when she described people who risk their lives to cross the English channel in small boats as an “invasion on the south coast”.

Last week, all members in Camden’s council chamber united across the political divide to vote in favour of sanctuary status, and councillors were told about all the efforts that had gone into providing a haven for Afghans fleeing the Taliban, and then Ukrainians escaping Putin’s invasion.

But Lib Dem leader Councillor Tom Simon said: “How can Camden Tories support a motion for a borough of sanctuary one week, then invite Suella Braverman to an event the next? This is a home secretary who dreams of sending asylum seekers to Rwanda and is breaking key pledges made to the victims of the Windrush Scandal. The hypocrisy is shocking.”

Conservative leader Councillor Gio Spinella is on record as blaming previous prime minister Boris Johnson’s behaviour as being a voter-loser locally in Camden – the party even lost a seat in Hampstead Town last May.

His predecessor, Oliver Cooper, dealt with the local and national tensions by saying his team of councillors would only comment on Camden issues.

Cllr Spinella said this week: “The motion that we voted on at the last full council meeting highlighted how Camden was working with the government as part of its effort to be a ‘Borough of Sanctuary’. The council can’t work outside of the law and it’s through collaboration that we can achieve the objective of ensuring that all legal refugees manage to settle and integrate in Camden, London and the UK.

“As for Mrs Braverman’s attendance to an event in our constituency, the invitation came from our Brent members and most association branches are usually understandably quite thrilled to have a home secretary come to their event.”

Local Conservative leader Gio Spinella prefers  a ‘careful and compassionate’ tone

He added: “On a personal note, I would prefer that the topics of immigration and refugees – two separate issues we should remember – be discussed at all times in a careful and compassionate tone and would avoid ‘Rwandan dreams’ or slogans on coffee mugs such as Labour’s in 2015.”

He was referring to how Labour once marketed cups with the words “controls on immigration” stamped on them, during Ed Miliband’s time as leader.

Mrs Braverman had been due to speak to local members last February but cancelled after the war in Ukraine began. Her parents are active Tory campaigners in Brent, and her mother stood as a by-election candidate in 2003.

Ticket holders have been promised “drinks and nibbles” at the event next week.