It is hard to deny that the government must take tough action on the issue of migrants arriving in Britain by small boats. A large proportion of those entering the country are not refugees fleeing danger but young men in search of better economic opportunities. Indeed, the largest increase in arrivals comes from Albania, an EU accession state that is neither at war nor under malign dictatorship. Ferrying such people to Britain is a criminal racket that should not be tolerated.
If all ‘irregular’ arrivals are to be classed as illegal, genuine refugees will be unable to apply for asylum
But under Home Secretary Suella Braverman’s plan, the Illegal Migration Bill will deport every person who enters the country by what the Home Office used to call ‘irregular’ methods. The bill is intended to target the small boat arrivals but would, in effect, apply to everyone. Anyone arriving illegally in Britain would lose their right of appeal for 28 days, giving the government four weeks to remove them to the country they came from or a third country, like Rwanda. It is an indiscriminate approach that will see everyone who arrives illegally kicked out, including genuine refugees.
Such a draconian policy is best understood as being a symptom of political panic. The Conservative party is further behind Labour in the polls than at almost any other time in its modern history. It is struggling to refer to itself as the party of low taxation or political stability. What can it do? The obvious temptation is to reinvigorate the Brexit debate on another issue: migration. Not only is it an issue that plays well with Red Wall voters; it is also one over which the Labour party cannot – and will not – compete.
Braverman is correct to say that dramatic action must be taken, but her plan looks impractical.
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