Yesterday, Keir Starmer unveiled Labour’s immigration white paper, while using very divisive language that scapegoats migrants, refugees and people seeking asylum. The paper outlines what the Government plans to do while they are in power. We will publish a separate blog about what’s in the paper later. 

The Prime Minister’s speech and his foreword to the white paper draw a bleak picture of migration – that it risks the UK turning into an ‘island of strangers’ and that it has caused ‘incalculable damage’ to the UK. The white paper’s specific content of course raises many concerns – namely to make  migrants’ lives hard and the Hostile Environment even more hostile. Scapegoating migrants is not to address the deep inequality the UK is experiencing: it is the successive governments’ political decisions that are worsening our housing crisis or overstretching the public sector. This hostility was, however, expected. Since they came into power in July last year, the Labour Party has been busy boasting about increasing immigration raids, detention and deportations; threats that have terrified our communities. 

What strikes us as most alarming is that the Prime Minister’s telling of the story of immigration in this country is far from what we witness on a day to day basis across the UK. Sure, the same speech is peppered with statements such as ‘Migration is part of Britain’s national story’. But we doubt if anyone will be paying attention to such platitudes: the inflammatory tone of his speech has already earned a shameful accolade as a contemporary version of the infamous rivers of blood speech by Enoch Powell. 

Again, what’s missing in all of this is migrants’ own voices, experiences and views. We are always talked about as numbers but the politicians don’t want to talk to us as human beings. This must change. 

This speech has an immediate, negative impact on our communities of migrants, refugees, people seeking asylum, as well as our allies. We stand in solidarity with everyone who is affected by the Prime Minister’s divisive language and is worried, anxious and scared about what is to come. It is natural for us to despair when it looks like nothing has been learned from the terrifying experience of the race riots last year, the violence that was encouraged by the government’s hostile rhetoric and practices that pitch communities against each other. 

And our message to our communities is this: remember that we are not alone – there are many of us fighting for migration justice. For example, Right to Remain has directly engaged with 1,000+ groups and institutions across the UK over the last three years alone, all united with our desire to build a stronger migration justice movement. What we see is not an island of strangers: we are witnessing a growing community of radical solidarity that is choosing to manifest care, compassion and dignity. We wish Keir Starmer would come and join us. Yvette Cooper is of course invited too. 

Right to Remain will be holding an online mutual-support space next week, to reflect together on this latest development. We will share more details via our newsletter, so stay tuned.

Migration is life. No one is illegal. These walls must fall. 

In the meantime, we are sending you love and solidarity, as always. 

Right to Remain team