It would have been "cowardly" not to speak out against the government's plan to send failed asylum seekers to Rwanda, the Archbishop of Canterbury has said.

Archbishop Justin Welby attacked the plan in his Easter Sunday sermon last month in which he said it raised "serious ethical questions". 

"Sub-contracting out our responsibilities, even to a country that seeks to do well, like Rwanda, is the opposite of the nature of God who himself took responsibility for our failures," he said. 

The Archbishop was in turn strongly criticised by government ministers and reportedly the Prime Minister over his comments.

Boris Johnson is reported to have told a private meeting of MPs that Welby had "misconstrued the policy".

It was also suggested by some critics that the Archbishop of Canterbury keep out of politics. 

Welby has since defended his comments several times. Addressing the issue again on Channel 4 News, he said that he had felt compelled to speak up. 

"On Maundy Thursday, which was three days before Easter, there was this announcement," he said. 

"I need to say something because it is the high-profile sermon of the year.

"I remember writing it – it was about six lines – and just wishing I didn't have to.

"To have avoided those issues would have been cowardly."

He also defended his intervention in an interview with The Times.

"The suggestion that I, as archbishop, should not be political is a nonsense," he said.