The shadow home secretary was accused of using the derogatory term by Labour’s Yvette Cooper last year.
Since then he has been given multiple opportunities to refute the allegation, but has only said he “doesn’t remember” saying it.
The new Labour government scrapped the Rwanda scheme in one of its first acts after winning the election in July.
Now Cleverly has said that he will make it his party’s policy again if he wins the Tory leadership race.
Speaking at his campaign launch, Cleverly said: “When we deal with illegal migration, I stand by what I have always said, we need to have a deterrent.
“And as leader, as prime minister, I will use my contacts and my reputation with Rwanda to resurrect that incredibly important partnership.”
Cleverly is the second Tory leadership candidate to say they will bring back the Rwanda plan, even though no deportation flights to the east African country ever took off.
Robert Jenrick, who resigned as immigration minister over Rishi Sunak’s approach to the policy, said last month: “I want a stronger version of the Rwanda plan, that’s what I proposed at the turn of the year. One that would enable us to detain people upon arrival and then remove them within hours or days rather than weeks or months.”
