Labour are happy to hammer the Government for it’s lack of progress, but lack any convincing alternative plan to make the system effective and bring numbers down.
The more totemic this legislation appears, the higher will be public expectations of it. Even if it passes, will Rishi Sunak be able to persuade voters it was worth the wait?
“In the five months since I launched the plan,” the Prime Minister says, “crossings are now down by 20 percent compared to last year.’
Challenged about an incident in 2018, Braverman says “we are looking at 2023 and beyond. This is a country which takes over 100,000 refugees and resettles them. They have nothing but gratitude.”
A proper refugee visa pathway would ensure Britain remained accessible to genuine refugees, ease pressure on the Home Office and the Treasury – and bolster the legitimacy of deterrence too.
Each side fears the other’s approach will give the courts too much scope to interfere with the operation of the new law.
The Prime Minister promised that we will ‘stop the boats’. We all want him to succeed in this endeavour. But good intentions will count for nothing if the legislation doesn’t achieve its aims.
There is no political consent for open borders. The state needs to police who comes here, and thus effective tools to deter and to remove those rejected.
The Refugee Council, my organisation, will continue to oppose this legislation both because we think it’s a stain on this country’s record of supporting those in need, and because it will do nothing to reduce the number of boats.