“Doubling down on division": BID Statement on Immigration White Paper Announcement
The government launches its hostile immigration policy in xenophobic speech.
Relying on divisive language, xenophobic rhetoric and racist stereotypes, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has launched Labour’s hostile and immigration policy.
In his speech the Prime Minister claimed the UK risks ‘becoming an island of strangers’, a chilling echo of Enoch Powell’s 1968 Rivers of Blood speech, which stated the UK population had found themselves ‘strangers in their own country’ due to migration.
From blaming migrants for the strain on public services to portraying them as a threat to jobs, safety, and social cohesion, Starmer has doubled down on division and the dangerous lie that migration is destroying the UK.
Public services are in crisis because of years of austerity, privatisation, and political choices, not because of migration. Starmer’s proposals ignore the reality that migration is essential, and acceptance, belonging and compassion are the cornerstones of a united and cohesive society.
Targeting students, long-term UK residents and care workers; separating more children from their parents, and attacking human rights legislation is clearly not in the public interest and does not address the true causes of inequality.
We are deeply concerned that rather than challenging far-right narratives, Starmer is legitimising them and trying to score cheap political points, risking further racial violence in the UK.
The last few years have shown that when we come together, cruel government policies such as the Rwanda plan can be resisted and that people in the UK will stand up for their communities.
Whatever the next few years bring, we will continue to resist these harmful narratives and fight for justice.
Pierre Makhlouf, Legal Director at BID said:
“To claim the UK risks becoming ‘an island of strangers’ while deliberately fuelling division and setting communities against each other is not just hypocritical—it’s reckless and dangerous. By echoing the rhetoric of Enoch Powell, the Prime Minister risks inciting racial tension and violence. Across the UK, people are organising against division, resisting, and standing up for justice, solidarity, and welcome. That is the country we believe in—and that is the future we are fighting for.”
