No Nominative Determinism Here...

Maya is decidely not...

The political “centre” usually reacts to the far right by denouncing its methods and distancing themselves from its coarse, racist rhetoric – but ultimately conceding to its underlying argument. In the days after the general election, Tony Blair advised Keir Starmer that to ward off the far right, he should celebrate what is good about immigration but be sure to “control” it. No matter how respectable and sensible such advice may seem to some within our political classes, the sentiment that “controlling” immigration is a way to appease socially conservative voters is one cause of the corrosiveness.Why? Because it implies that a fear of immigration is a legitimate concern, and that reducing immigration is the appropriate method to assuage that fear.

So isn't it?  

Are concerns about immigration “legitimate”? Demonstrably, no.

Don't bother looking, Reader, she believes 'demonstrably' is just a word, and doesn't go on to demonstrate anything.  

The “legitimate concerns” in this case are illegitimate. Admitting this doesn’t mean dismissing what people are saying. Equally, engaging people with these views need not lead to legitimisation. The choice is not ignore or accept. Politics is about persuading people of another way; to think this can’t be done is patronising as well as dangerous.

To think it can be done by simply telling everyone that they are wrong is pretty patronising too.  

The government could change the narrative by making the history of empire and migration a statutory party of the curriculum, and by actively countering racism in the press, among opposition parties and within its own ranks. But it could also use this moment to change people’s material circumstances by getting rid of “hostile environment” policies and providing safe routes of travel (one of the only viable solutions to stop people from having to cross the Channel). It could also make visas cheaper, provide better housing, simplify labyrinthine Home Office processes and end temporary, exploitative visas, giving people the ability to come here on decent terms and stay if they want to.

So, to challenge people's assumptions the 'answer' is to flood the country with yet more immigration. Well, that's bound to work! And the craziness doesn't stop there!  

This boldness should be extended beyond immigration. The government should tax the richest, invest in public services and do what’s needed for a just transition from fossil fuels.

Might as well shoot for the moon, eh, Maya? 

The reasons behind the recent violence are many and complex – it cannot be neatly chalked up to the immigration debate alone. But the anti-immigrant sloganeering needs to stop: whether it’s the appeasing of “legitimate concerns”, a commitment to “stop the boats” or the more-acceptable-in-polite-society promises to put “controls on immigration”.

Ignoring and belittling legitimate concerns has never ever worked in the history of mankind, Maya.  

I'm Pretty Sure There's A Syndrome Here...

Gosh, what's it called? Something Scandinavian, I think.

 

Ah, yes. That's the one.

More than 50 survivors of terrorist attacks, including the Manchester Arena bombing and the London Bridge attacks, have signed an open letter warning politicians to stop conflating British Muslims with extremism. The signatories include Rebecca Rigby, the widow of soldier Lee Rigby who was murdered in south-east London in 2013, and Paul Price, who lost his partner, Elaine McIver, in the Manchester Arena attack in 2017. They caution against comments which play “into the hands of terrorists”.

Like these? 

Paul Price, who was badly injured in the Manchester Arena attack in May 2017, said terrorists exploited division, and politicians should focus on what unites communities. “Terrorists want people to take sides and for people to get angry,” he said. “It should be everyone against the terrorists.”

Rebecca Rigby, from West Yorkshire, whose husband Lee was murdered near a barracks in May 2013, said: “Lee’s death was used by some to drive hatred against Muslims in general. That’s not what Lee would have wanted and it’s not what our family wants.

“If we are serious about tackling terrorism the most important thing we can do is differentiate between the vast majority of Muslims who are our peaceful neighbours, and the small number of extremists.”

But what if you've got that ratio wrong, Rebecca? What then? 

The Refugee Lovers Have Blood On Their Hands Again...

A man who killed a woman in a head-on car smash in Stockport, Cheshire, while he was using a mobile phone has been jailed for five years today.

Mohammed Javadpour, 53, was distracted with his device when he failed to spot a narrow blind bend at 8.30pm on November 12, 2019.

He veered into the wrong side of the road and ploughed straight into Elayne Goodwin's Vauxhall car.

As Miss Goodwin, 56, lay dying in the wreckage of her vehicle and police tended to her at the scene, Javadpour used the smart phone to make contact with a friend and arranged for the device to be taken away.

We aren't told if the 'friend' was charged with anything. Or why the police allowed this piece of shit to meet up with them, rather than being in handcuffs in the back of a police car... 

The phone has never been recovered.

What a shocker.  

Javadpour, from Woodford, Stockport, had previous convictions for driving while disqualified, having no insurance and possessing fake motoring documents with intent to deceive.

He initially blamed Miss Goodwin for the crash before blaming the fictitious driver of a third mystery car which he claimed had fled the scene.

Later, when shown a copy of an independent accident report proving he was in fact to blame, Javanpour claimed to not understand his legal advice.

Eh? How would that ever work? 

Well, Reader, maybe because he's a refugee from Iran. I see no mention here of the revocation of that status. 

Why not?

Of Course, It's Critical Of The New Regime...

...it's been done by people who long for Open Borders. And have marched for years through the institutions to ensure they get them:

The system for assessing who should be asked to pay for NHS services “incentivises racial profiling”, an investigation has found.

A study by the Institute for Public Policy Research found that overstretched NHS staff sometimes racially profile patients in order to determine who is not “ordinarily resident” in the UK, and therefore must pay for their care.

Well, yes. If your organisation is tasked with the job of ensuring foreign patients pay, you'll look to target foreigners, won't you? 

The report is critical of the more stringent charging regime introduced by NHS England over the past decade as part of a series of measures devised to create a hostile environment for people living in the UK without the correct immigration status.

Or 'protecting the public revenue', which is another way of describing their task. 

One of the officers told the IPPR study they had felt forced to discriminate between patients based on their name.

“If you’ve got a, I don’t know, Mohammed Khan and a Fred Cooper, you’re obviously going to go for [investigating] the Mohammed Khan … Even for someone who’s, you know, well I’d like to think hopefully open-minded, like myself, you’re just trying to save yourself time because there’s not enough hours in the day,” the officer said.

This is an argument for having more staff in the role, not scrapping the role altogether. And maybe for tightening up the selection process for hiring officers: 

A hospital employee also reported that discrimination on the basis of ethnicity was used to determine who should be billed for treatment.

“It’s a system that is designed to benefit [white] people like me, not people like … the patient on intensive care who is black and British and was unconscious and sent a bill. So why did someone think he was not eligible for care? Given he was unconscious most of the admission, significantly unwell, probably not his accent, more likely his skin colour,” the health worker said.

But once it was established he was entitled to the treatment, was he expected to pay? The answer's no, of course! 

Some healthcare staff told IPPR researchers that they disliked the extra burden of having to consider whether to refer a patient for charging, which they felt distracted them from their core medical responsibilities.

Oh, diddums! There's aspect of my job I'm not keen on, but I either do them regardless or leave for another job. I don't demand the company change! 

And I'm surprised it gets a chance to distract them. I thought filming TikTok videos and finding new ways to hide from patients took up all that time!

What does the report conclude? Go on. Surprise me!

The report, Towards True Universal Healthcare, recommends expanding eligibility for free healthcare to include all UK residents, regardless of their immigration status.

Yeah, put that one in the round file. 

They Did Their Jobs For Once...

...and naturally, they are being penalised for it by one of those long marchers through our institutions:

The court heard Mr Dawood was working illegally at the car wash after being refused asylum when he arrived in Britain from Sudan.

He had fled Sudan because he belonged to a tribe being persecuted by the authorities, the inquest was told.

And presumably persecuted in all the other countries in Africa too, or why flee here..? 

Mr Dawood fled after immigration officers carried out an enforcement visit at the car wash at around 10.08am. He was pursued by officers to a neighbouring warehouse, where he then climbed on shelving and ran through a metal door before climbing onto its roof.

The inquest into his death was told officers did not pursue when Mr Dawood started to climb, but remained close and did not withdraw.

Well, yes. What else were they supposed to do? 

Ms Saunders' report, published on Wednesday, said immigration officers should have 'practical training in pursuit situations' following his death.

Sounds a lot more like she wants them to be trained to immediately give up, doesn't it? 

Mr Dawood's mother Hameda Hamed Shogar Ahmed, who travelled to the UK for her son's inquest from the Sudanese city of Al Fashir, told the court her son had wanted to earn money to send back to Sudan to support his family.

Strange sort of 'persecution' when the mother - presumably from the same tribe - is allowed to travel... 

'[My son] felt a strong passion for human rights and felt that everyone should be protected and free to live their lives free from persecution and fear.'

Pity he didn't feel that everyone should obey the laws of the country they are (illegally) living in, or he wouldn't be dead... 

It's All Becoming Much Clearer Now...

The outgoing head of the UK Border Force has triggered a political row by describing ‘bloody borders’ as ‘just such a pain in the bloody a***’.

Paul Lincoln’s incendiary remarks – made in a speech to mark his departure as director general of the Border Force...

It always is, isn't it? 

Like the Army general who lays into the modernisation programme while keeping his mouth shut and his pension growing until retirement day. You only get their real thoughts and character when you aren't paying them any more.

Mr Lincoln, who left his position last month as part of a shake-up by Home Secretary Priti Patel...

It seems she's doing something, after all, then! But will it be enough?

Odd Way Of Trying To Say...

...'illegal immigrant dies trying to enter the country illegally'. 

But it is the 'Guardian', I suppose.

The latest suspected tragedy emerged after 500 more migrants crossed the Channel during the day, taking the total so far this year to over 20,000 – more than double 2020’s 8,420 total.

The words 'tragedy' and 'migrants' grate on me. As does the naked appeal to emotion:

In the port of Dover, dozens of recent arrivals were brought to shore by RNLI lifeboats, reports claimed.

A young child holding a cuddly toy and wearing just one wellington boot was among the large numbers of people seen being brought ashore.

Awww, the poor mite! No, don't you dare question the parenting of those responsible for this journey, just give them a council house immediately! 

Amnesty International UK’s chief executive, Sacha Deshmukh, said: “We need to remember that these dangerous crossings are taking place because the government has provided no safe alternative for people to exercise their right to seek asylum here.

“If Priti Patel is truly concerned with tackling criminal gangs and their exploitation of people, she needs to set up safe asylum routes so people no longer need to depend on smugglers.”

That's like burglars getting together to form an organisation to claim that burglary has to take place because householders refuse to open their doors and give the burglars all their money...

Protecting Our Borders..?

The number of foreign criminals released from prison on to the streets has reached a record high of almost 11,000.

Official figures show that at the end of June there were 10,882 foreign national offenders who had been released from jail but not deported.

All are subject to deportation because they were handed prison sentences of at least 12 months.

I wonder how many new ones we are unknowingly (or in the case of the 'Tory' government, uncaringly) admitting right now?  

The latest total has rocketed by 176 per cent since 2012, when the number stood at less than 4,000.

Wasn't the Tory Party once the party of law and order? I'm sure I remember it used to be... 

One in eight prisoners in jail in England and Wales are now non-UK citizens, or 9,850 of the 78,000 behind bars.

Will we see that figure rise in the future? I'm not a betting woman, but I'd have a flutter on that. 

What Is Our Country Turning Into..?

The UK’s biggest business lobby group has called on the government to relax post-Brexit immigration rules...

Wait, why? 

...to help companies struggling with staff shortages to hire more workers from overseas.

Hire British ones instead! Oh, god, it's not the curry houses again, is it? 

The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said the government needed to immediately update its “shortage occupations list” to include several areas where employers are finding it difficult to recruit staff, including butchers, bricklayers and welders.

Oh! That's some strange collection of occupations there... 

Pressure is mounting on hauliers, hospitality venues and the food and drink industry in particular, with companies scrambling to hire staff as pandemic restrictions are relaxed and demand for goods and services returns.

Well, how many unemployed do we have? 1.6 million? I think we can find some there, can't we? 

A government spokesperson said: “Employers should invest in our domestic workforce instead of relying on labour from abroad.

The government carefully considered the migration advisory committee’s findings and recommendations on the shortage occupation list, but decided not to make wide-scale changes while we monitor the new skilled worker route and assess how the UK labour market develops and recovers post-pandemic.”

Quite right. Let's use the resources we have, rather than purchasing foreign ones. 

If It's Good Enough For British Taxpayers...

The Refugee Council has supported more than 400 asylum seekers in hotels and the report was based on their testimony.

Enver Solomon, chief executive of the council, said: “People who have fled war and persecution often arrive in the UK with just the clothes on their back, in urgent need of healthcare, nutritious food and other essentials such as toiletries.”

The charity says the food provided in many of the hotels is “a major cause of concern”. Food often arrives in small portions, with limited options available, the report says. The quality varies widely across sites, with some hotels providing little or no fruit.

...it's more than good enough for 'refugees', Enver.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “Asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute are provided with accommodation, a choice of three meals a day in line with NHS nutrition guidelines, as well as access to fresh fruit and drinking water, and we work closely with our providers and local charities to provide other basics.”

Particularly 'refugees' who are fleeing....err, Calais. 

If They Keep Coming, This Is What Has To Happen...

A new network of immigration detention units for women is being quietly planned by the Home Office, contrary to previous pledges to reform the system and reduce the number of vulnerable people held.

When situations change, should previously-stated policies not change to meet the threat, then? 

Alphonsine Kabagabo, director of the charity Women for Refugee Women, called the creation of a detention centre in the north-east a “betrayal of previous commitments made by ministers”.

Who made those committments? 

The developments undermine attempts by the former immigration minister Caroline Nokes to reform the system.

Well, there's your clue, Alphonsine, 'former' minister. She's out, someone else is in, and they ain't impressed with her kow-towing to immigrant pressure groups like yours.  

Philp confirmed plans were being finalised for a new detention centre in County Durham. He said: “The public rightly expects us to maintain a robust immigration system and detention plays a crucial role in this.

“We are committed to making sure people with no entitlement to be in the UK, including people with serious criminal convictions, are removed.”

As you should be.