The Immigration Bill: “turning people against people”
Over 70 people came to our January public meeting on the latest Immigration Bill. There was consensus that the real aims of the Bill were
- to create a hostile environment for people seeking asylum
- to appease and inflame racist stereotypes about people coming to the UK
- to create precedents for charging for basic services and using techniques of exclusion and repression that could potentially be extended to all of us
- to “turn people against people”
But there was plenty of opposition and discussion of ways to monitor the effects of the Bill and to refuse to implement it. You can read a summary of its main provisions below.
To get a better picture of what happened at the meeting see this Storify account. Thanks to all who contributed to the meeting and for spreading the news about it – in particular Fran from ASSIST and Marcia for the main photo.
The Immigration Bill is not yet law and is still being discussed in the House of Lords. You can track its progress here.
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A new year, a new Immigration Bill, a new attempt to stir up a “hostile environment” for undocumented migrants in the UK. According to Sheffield MP Paul Blomfield:
“To call the suggested measures dangerous would be an understatement. They vilify the exploited and, even worse, strengthen the hand of unscrupulous employers. The steps contained in the Immigration Bill not only risk forcing undocumented workers into exploitative employment relationships—supposedly outlawed by the Modern Slavery Act—but potentially give abusive employers even more weapons with which to threaten employees”
He should know, having sat on the parliamentary scrutiny committee which went through the Immigration Bill line by line in November and December. So, we’re pleased invite to Paul Blomfield MP to introduce a discussion on what the bill is and how we oppose it.
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Thursday 14th January 2016 SYMAAG Public Meeting:
What is the Immigration Bill and how do we fight it?
With speaker Paul Blomfield MP
7-9pm (doors open at 6.30 for tea & biscuits)
Quaker Meeting House 10 St James’ St, Sheffield S1 2EW
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What’s in the latest Immigration Bill?
- A new offence of “Illegal Working” carrying huge penalties for undocumented workers
- Making landlords responsible for checking immigration status of prospective tenants
- Creating a new offence: driving a vehicle while not legally resident
- Making banks responsible for policing accounts of undocumented migrants
- Extending the “deport first, appeal later” policy
- Restrictions on asylum support for those with initially rejected asylum claims
The results (aims?) of the Immigration Bill if it becomes law are likely to mean:
- Increased exploitation of undocumented workers as they are driven “underground”
- Discrimination and racism against prospective tenants who look or sound “foreign”
- More police stop and search actions targeted against ethnic minorities
- Excluding part of society from access to banking and related services
- Deporting people to persecution in their country of origin, denying appeal rights
- Using destitution as a weapon against undocumented migrants and their children
What can we do?
The Immigration Bill has already been voted through in Parliament (see how your MP voted here) and is now at committee stage in the House of Lords, where amendments are still possible.
If the Bill does become law, SYMAAG will work with others to create resistance to the Bill being put into practice eg trade union efforts to recruit and work with undocumented workers, monitoring the results of the landlord checks, publicising destitution caused to families due to asylum support cuts, supporting people who try to make “out-of-country” appeals against deportation.
This Immigration Bill, like the last one, aims to create a “Hostile Environment” for undocumented migrants. It also attempts to turn landlords, local authority workers, employers, bank workers, teachers, health workers into border police. We should refuse to play this role and support others when they refuse to.
Millions of people in the UK took action in support of refugees last summer: “Refugees Welcome” was the message and solidarity efforts continue with donations and trips to the Calais migrant camp and Lesvos and demands to give asylum to refugees. But – as the latest Immigration Bill shows – the battle for the rights of migrants, documented or not, doesn’t end when they reach the UK. As Lucy Mayblin of Sheffield University put it, writing about the Immigration Bill, “the boring bits matter too“.
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Find more about the Immigration Bill
- Open Democracy’s collection of articles here
- “A very grey cloud with faint silver linings”, analysis of the Bill by Right to Remain
- Migrants Rights Network summary
- Immigration Bill timetable and Government version of events here
- Briefing and links from Regional Asylum Activism project here
with thanks to Banksy, Sam Musarika, Harry Stopes and John Grayson for art and photos
