Labor Party continues to create hostile environment for migrants despite riots

Posted on by Vaseline

The Labour government has announced new measures to stem the arrival of asylum seekers on boats from France and to step up the removal of failed asylum seekers. This includes increasing the capacity of detention centres, first deployed under Tony Blair’s government. It shows that, rather than offering ‘change’, Labour has effectively played into the far-right narrative in the wake of the recent race riots – with some accusing it of legitimising them.

Workers: Stop the boats and send them home

Labour said 100 new “specialist intelligence and investigation officers” would be recruited to the National Crime Agency (NCA) to help dismantle smuggling gangs operating the dangerous Channel crossings.

The Home Office added that the government is also aiming for the highest rate of deportations of failed asylum seekers in five years in the next six months. The aim is to remove more than 14,000 people by the end of the year, the Home Office said. Times.

The new Labour government plans to increase detention capacity in prisons and punish employers who hire people who have no right to work in the UK. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said:

We are taking strong and clear measures to improve security at our borders and ensure that the rules are followed and enforced.

Preventing the arrival of small boats was a key issue in the July 4 election, which saw Labour win a large majority.

Labour: Back to the Even Worse Old Days

Within days of taking power, Prime Minister Keir Starmer scrapped a controversial plan to deport illegal migrants to Rwanda, a key policy of the previous Conservative government.

Starmer, on the other hand, has promised to dismantle the people-smuggling gangs that organise the crossings and who receive thousands of euros per migrant.

The Ministry of the Interior is looking for a so-called border control commander who will cooperate with European countries in the fight against human traffickers.

Starmer has also pledged to French President Emmanuel Macron to strengthen “cooperation” in tackling the rise in the number of undocumented migrants.

The Home Office said the NCA was conducting around 70 investigations into criminal networks involved in human trafficking. It said the government would issue fines, closure orders and possible prosecutions against anyone found to be employing “illegal” workers.

The ministry also said it would add 290 beds to two deportation centres and redeploy staff to try to deport failed asylum seekers at the fastest pace since 2018. The Interior Ministry did not provide figures on the numbers involved.

Starmer gives credibility to the far right

However, people on X were quick to point out exactly what Labour was doing:

Minnie Rahman of the migrant rights group Praxis accused Labour of ‘legitimising far-right ideology’:

And as the Green Party’s Peter Underwood summarised, Labour has still done nothing on safe routes:

Enver Solomon of the Refugee Council accused the government of “wasting taxpayers’ money on expanding detention places” and said the government should invest in voluntary return programmes.

If you treat people with respect and humanity and support them to return, many more people will return.

Enver also urged ministers to focus on creating safe routes to discourage small boat crossings, saying “it won’t work unless the government creates safe routes as well.”

Ultimately, it appears that Labour has no qualms about maintaining the Tories’ “hostile environment” for refugees and asylum seekers – which is exactly what the far right wants.

Main image via Canary Islands

Additional reporting via Agence France-Presse

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