Senior British civil servants have launched a legal appeal against the government's controversial Rwanda deportation legislation.

The First Division Association, the trade union which represents the United Kingdom's senior civil servants, said the new legislation could effectively force its members to break both international law and the Civil Service Code.

The Association's general secretary, DAVE PENMAN said civil servants should never be left in a position where they are conflicted between the instructions of ministers and adhering to the Civil Service Code.