Weekly Thoughts

Immigration is back in the news again (was it ever out?) with the announcement by the Home Secretary of a raft of new tougher policies to tackle the issue. The announcement has had a mixed reception, attracting praise from both the Conservatives and Reform and a degree of criticism from the Governing Party. Immigration is indeed a thorny issue for many on the left in politics. The image of Britain as a country which welcomes refugees and asylum seekers with open arms is a powerful one for them They look back with nostalgia to the days when people fleeing religious persecution in eastern Europe were welcomed in this country, settled here and built new lives. In the same way many people were welcomed from other Commonwealth countries to help rebuild Britain after WWII. But now it all seems to be different, even though our health and social services would collapse without immigrant workers, immigrants are seen as a threat to our national identity and there are allegations that this country is a “soft touch” when it comes to immigration and the “destination of choice” for those seeking a new country to build their lives in. The new measures announced by the Government are intended to tackle this issue by making it harder to settle here and providing disincentives to those thinking about doing so.

But will they do so? The main problem with the present system is that it is so inefficient and takes so long to process applications for asylum. And that is the core of the problem; I worked for over forty years as a bureaucrat and to me it was clear that to be humane a bureaucracy needs to be above all efficient. It needs to be able to make decisions with the minimum of delay. If a backlog builds up and people are subject to months or even years of delay before decisions are reached, decisions which will profoundly affect the rest of their lives, this leaves them in limbo and is quite frankly inhumane. It is the reason why people end up having to be accommodated in hotels, not that they are living in hotel conditions. They are also not allowed to work so spend much of their time hanging about with nothing to do while their claims are processed. No wonder this leads to unrest and criminality and resentment by the communities in which the unfortunate immigrants find themselves. 

I hope the Governments new measures will help to bring the immigration crisis under control but unless they are much more efficient than the present system that will not happen. Indeed, rather than taking these controversial steps the Government might have been better advised to pour resources into clearing the backlog and making the present system work efficiently.

READINGS AND PRAYERS

23 NOVEMBER – CHRIST THE KING – Luke 23.33-43 – today you will be with me in paradise – thanksgiving for the Kingship of Christ

24 NOVEMBER – Monday – Luke 21.1-4 – the widow’s mite – that we may be generous with our resources

25 NOVEMBER – Tuesday – Daniel 2.31- 45 – the statue with the feet of clay – for integrity in public life

26 NOVEMBER – Wednesday – Luke 21.12-19 – warnings of persecution – for those who suffer for the Faith today

27 NOVEMBER – Thursday - Daniel 6.12 – end – Daniel in the lions’ den – for grace to resist temptation

28 NOVEMBER – Friday – Luke 21.29-33 – the fig tree – that we may be fruitful in our life of faith

29 NOVEMBER – Saturday – Daniel 7.15-27 – the four great beasts – all politicians