Keir Starmer’s anti-immigration comments are dangerous and divisive

We live in extraordinary times when a Labour Party leader proudly uses populist language about immigration that echoes the inflammatory words of Enoch Powell, whilst cosying up to the far-right Reform Party on how to tackle the issue. For sure, Keir Starmer’s comments on immigration are both dangerous and divisive.

At a press conference on Monday to introduce the Immigration White Paper, Prime Minister Starmer claimed the current immigration system risked turning the UK into an “island of strangers” and that his Labour Government would “take back control” of the country’s borders. 

For Starmer to use language akin to Enoch Powell’s infamous Rivers of Blood speech of 1968, where the British White population were said to have “found themselves made strangers in their own country”, is deeply disturbing. Yet Starmer did not stop there; he also chose to adopt the anti-immigrant Brexit slogan to “take back control”. 

We have all seen how the xenophobic rhetoric around Brexit has translated onto the streets of Britain, where migrants and ethnic minorities have experienced a huge rise in racist verbal and physical abuse that were reminiscent of the rise of the far-right National Front in the 1970s. Last year’s racist riots underscored the depth of the problem. 

Sadly, Monday’s speech is not a one off and Labour’s lurch to the right is a deliberate, calculated move to court Reform voters, as Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQ) showed.

Reform Leader Nigel Farage heaped praise on Starmer at PMQ, saying his party had “enjoyed” the Prime Minister’s immigration speech on Monday and that he was “learning a very great deal” from Reform! Farage then urged Starmer to treat those crossing the English Channel on boats as a “national security emergency”, while simultaneously equating undocumented migrants with terrorism.

Instead of countering these clearly xenophobic comments, Starmer concurred with Farage, telling Parliament “the situation is serious”, before going on to explain that his government’s new Borders Bill would give “far-reaching, terrorism-like powers” to law enforcement, so they can tackle migrants trying to enter the UK unlawfully. Instead of moderating his language, Starmer doubled down, demonstrating just how close Labour has become to Reform on immigration.

It is truly sad to see a Labour Government align with far right politicians. Such demonisation will not resolve the issue, but it will feed the UK’s racists and encourage even more attacks on migrants and other long-established ethnic minority communities in Britain, while devaluing the vital role they play in our economy and society. 

As Liberal Democrat Assembly Member, Hina Bokhari posted on social media, “Keir's rhetoric on migration is a leaf straight out of Farage's playbook. Foreign workers aren't strangers – they're our neighbours, our friends, our carers, our community – our city.”

Our East London borough of Waltham Forest has benefited immensely from immigration. Whether it is staff working in our public services, or running community groups, or performing in local sports teams, or providing us with a wonderful array of international cuisines and goods, and vibrant cultural events that are inspired by their ethnic homelands, immigration has touched and enriched us all immeasurably. 

Diversity is our borough's strength and it should be celebrated, not undermined by Starmer’s Labour as it shamefully cosies up to Reform policies. This approach is not only damaging Labour’s left wing credentials – hence dozens of Labour politicians queuing up to distance themselves from Starmer’s comments – but it also harms the very fabric of our multi-racial society. 

Simply put, language matters! By all means let us discuss immigration policy openly, but we should take care not to do so in a manner that stokes fear and animosity towards migrants. At time when there's so much hate and conflict in the world, we Liberal Democrats believe that our leaders should focus on messages of unity not division. Yes, we must find a solution to the problems that unchecked immigration brings, but the national conversation should be constructive and compassionate, not steeped in decades-old racist tropes that present foreigners as the ‘enemy’. 

Alex Lewis is a campaigner in Higham Hill and chair of the Waltham Forest Liberal Democrats.