Last weekend I went for a walk on Hampstead Heath. As we meandered beneath
the trees we saw lots of other families just like us; but none of them was
speaking English. A few days later I took the bus to Soho – again not one of
the many conversations going on around me was in my language.
I love the diversity, energy and prosperity that people from all over the
world bring to London. But sometimes I get that strange sense of not feeling
at home in my own town. And I’m not the only one: last week one of Gordon
Brown’s “ask the people” roadshows found the public rate immigration as a
more urgent priority than education or terrorism.
And while a plethora of races and cultures is the norm now in Britain’s
multi-ethnic cities, the recent influx (in the 1990s 1.2m more people came
to live here once those who’ve emigrated are accounted for – and that’s just
the official statistics) means that rural areas and smaller towns are having
to integrate large foreign populations too. Julie Spence, the chief
constable of Cambridgeshire, spoke last week about the cost and cultural
clashes of having large numbers of eastern Europeans on her patch.
It is not just the police who are being squeezed, but doctors’ surgeries and
schools all over Britain. To get a sense of the scale of the nonplanning,
the Home Office estimated that no more than 13,000 eastern Europeans from
the accession states would come to Britain annually: 720,000 have
registered. And nobody is counting the Iraqis, Kurds and Afghans sneaking in
every night through our ports. Or the Chinese smuggled in by people
traffickers, the Somali refugees . . . No wonder the public is worried.
So to get a sense of where all of this is going, I went to meet the man who is
paid to engender social cohesion, Trevor Phillips, formerly the head of the
Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) and now in charge of the Commission for
Equality and Human Rights which takes over the responsibilities of the CRE,
the Equal Opportunities Commission and the Disability Rights Commission next
week.
A veteran of race politics, it was Phillips who declared that multiculturalism
wasn’t working, sounding the death knell for that oh so British doctrine
that for 30 years decreed we should live alongside each other, let different
communities and races do their own thing and not worry about integration,
helping immigrants learn English or inculcating British values. It was a
doctrine that died on 7/7 when British-born Muslim suicide bombers murdered
their fellow citizens.
Though undoubtedly the right thing to do, Phillips’s condemnation of
multiculturalism made him massively unpopular with many of his former
brothers – as I found out when I interviewed him about his new job on stage
at the CRE’s farewell race convention last year. I was there to talk to him
about the role of the new commission. Questions from the floor were hostile.
Voices were raised. Many veterans of the race riots of the 1970s saw
Phillips as a sell-out, furious that the focus on race was to be lost as the
CRE merged into a wider body. Phillips was taken aback by the “bullying”
attitudes.
This time we are in his offices in Victoria Street without an audience, but he
is still uncompromising on his old comrades. “They have to grow up. That
militancy must be consigned to the dustbin of history. The CRE was set up to
deal with a different set of circumstances. Now we have to chart a course
for how we can deal with difference. We have to be more proactive and more
friendly.”
Race is, as he puts it, “no longer black and white”. In terms of life chances,
a black African girl is likely to do better than a white British boy. A
Chinese baby born today will probably be much better paid than his or her
white contemporaries. It is no longer the case that ethnic minority kids get
a raw deal because of white racism.
But despite such progress, Phillips is aware of the challenges we face to
integrate the new arrivals. “We are now in the age of difference, not just
in our big cities, but everywhere. We are all struggling to get used to
this. But people like Andrew Green at Migrationwatch are saying these new
arrivals can’t fit in. I believe that shows contempt for the tolerance of
the British people. As a nation, because of being Welsh, Scots, Irish,
English and still British we are pretty good at absorbing people. Once we
get our brains in gear and stop being frightened about race, we are pretty
good in this country at doing the immigration job. We just have to treat it
positively. We have to tell immigrants the rules and what we expect.” Tell
that to Cambridgeshire police.
He puts much of the anxiety about this down to “bad government planning which
has made this all much more difficult. It’s not controlled and not managed.
There are definitely issues of competence over the numbers coming here. And
many of the problems we are seeing are happening because of that bad
management”.
Now, he believes, the government is getting to grips with it. He cites Liam
Byrne, the immigration minister, with whom he says he has worked closely on
this, (not one for hiding his light under a bushel, Phillips) for going in
the right direction. Byrne, he says, has started counting both the number of
people coming to Britain and the number leaving. And it was Byrne who this
year finally admitted the public was right to be worried about immigration.
Labour is realising they have to talk about this which is why Gordon Brown
has been banging on about Britishness: expect to hear lots about “identity
politics” at the Labour conference this week. Slowly politicians are
beginning to grasp the nettle. Why has it taken so long?
“Governments since the 1960s have been terrified of talking about race because
of the spectre of Enoch Powell,” says Phillips. “They are scared of raising
these issues for fear of being branded racist. But we must be able to have
an honest conversation about racial difference and immigration. We must
recognise diversity, not pretend it doesn’t exist. It is okay to say ‘I
don’t like what you do’, but not okay to say ‘I don’t like what you are’.
Many of us don’t know how to talk to each other. My job is to work out how
to make it work.”
So what are his proposals? He thinks that in divided communities such as
Oldham or Burnley that rather than quotas to mix the races in schools, or
bussing pupils from one part of town to another, the key is getting
different kinds of kids together for music or sport – or sending them on
summer camps (all things his new body will be advocating and funding).
As for the political challenge, Phillips is upbeat. “Gordon is pretty smart on
this, he’s seen that there are two great challenges at the moment. 1) How do
we live with the planet? 2) How do we live with each other? The one most
likely to destroy civilisation in my view is that we can’t live with each
other.
“Gordon has spotted that what we really fear is the consequence of this
rushing tide of turbulence of diversity, which is why he is concentrating on
the identity, Britishness, which will form a glue that will keep us together
while everything is conspiring to force us apart.”
I’m not so sure that “Britishness” is the superglue he and Brown believe. What
is it? Its purest expression is the Rule Britannia fest of the Last Night of
the Proms – and there were precious few brown faces there, however hard the
BBC tried to find them.
But luckily, as well as Britishness, Phillips has some radical prescriptions
for our unease. First he says that every immigrant must learn English, that
the days of council-funded interpreters and translations on tap are over.
“English is a sine qua non. And when we’ve surveyed this, the people who are
most keen that immigrants learn English are former immigrants. They know
that if you don’t have English you are shut out.”
He tells me about going to Bradford and Oldham and the middle-aged Bangladeshi
ladies he’s met learning English alongside their children on a special bus.
Looking stern, he says there is no place in society for wives forbidden by
their husbands from taking part – these men must “get over it”: it’s
official, the “live and let live” attitude to subjugating women, or honour
killings or extremism is over. Multiculturalism RIP.
Even more controversially, Phillips is advocating a two-track immigration
system. The United Nations says 200m people do not live and work in the
country they were born in. “This is not a fearsome tide of refugees, but
people coming to find work. We need them.” But, he says, we need to
distinguish between those who want to work for a while and go home and those
“wanting to be citizens”.
Most crucial, he thinks, is “to have a system where, frankly, people can leave
easily. One of the reasons people come and they stay is that they are
worried that if they leave they won’t get back in . . . I think we should
make that entry and exit easier – give people a permit to be a waiter or
whatever, rather than coming in on a lorry.” That requires a more flexible
and coherent system.
“It’s different from 50 years ago when my parents came from Guyana – then it
was difficult to go back home. Whereas now people virtually commute from
Warsaw. If we are too scared about immigration we force people to be here
all the time.”
That would be one track, a kind of semi-cit-izenship for transitory workers
where temporary migrants pay for public services such as health, education
and welfare before being entitled to work here.
“Then there needs to be another track for people who want to come and be
British. There are lots of people who like what we are and want to be part
of it. I like proposals that such people should do voluntary work, that they
have to display their desire for citizenship. It is all part of the desire
for integration.” He is passionate about “equality” – a key part of the new
body. White people are part of this too. “It’s not right that whites should
be queue-jumped on things like housing.”
Does he think America has lessons for us? “Absolutely not. It’s a myth that
they are a nation of immigrants that all muck in together. The US is a
racially segregated society. I don’t want that for this country. When I go
to America to see my relations I can be there for four or five weeks and
never speak to a white person. I hate that.”
If the Labour government don't act to control our borders effectively the problem or the perceived problem of mass immigration will explode.
I am always amazed at the complacency of this government and ashamed to say I voted for them. If your bath was overflowing with water you would turn the tap off, if your house was on fire you'd get it put out. So why when they acknowledege that this is a serious threat do they sit on their hands and do nothing?
If there is a recession the british people will turn to right wing parties and Labour can forget having all that power.
Matt, Lichfield,
"Trevor is quoted: 'When I go to America to see my relations I can be there for four or five weeks and never speak to a white person. I hate that'. "
Then Trevor must make zero effort to mingle, it'd be near impossible for me to go that long and not speak to a non-white, assuming I even gave it a thought.
The UK voted for Labour three times and is just now realising that immigration is a big mess and getting worse ? Amazing.
Stan(expat), Texas, USA
The final comment about the US seems myopic indeed - but it does raise one of the fundamental differences between the UK and the US. The latter was a nation founded very largely on being a nation of emigrants. It was supposed to be the melting-pot. Anybody who went owed allegiance first and foremost to that nation, and all it stood for. In the UK with a much more established, settled and overwhelmingly white population we have attempted another route and it has failed. Multiculturalism is a false concept and can only be enforced by apartheid type legislation. We have to establish a framework that enables us to allow Britishness to evolve and flourish by assimilating all that is good about the steady flow of immigrants. We also have to slow that flow down - the infrastructure will fail if we don't - and it is economic pressure that leads to societal breakdown.
Tim, Kingston,
There is something about the English/British nature, we are quite an understated bunch "musn't grumble" we say! In some ways I think that we are the most difficult race in the world to read, compared to the demonstrative people that we traditionally compare ourselves, animated Italians, stroppy Germans, loud Americans the list goes on. For a foreigner in this country it must be puzzling, our politeness must be misleading and borderline dishonest. Maybe that's why we drink so much, then we become more direct and honest. I honestly think that the tolerance much reported in the last few years is running extremely thin, it was always superficial at best. Even if you have been a "little englander" as the left wing press have named it, your views need to kept secret, how dare you not be willing to dilute your identity and accept change. The English may appear meek but they will vote to take England back, they have had a gut full.
Mark Potter, Wendover , Bucks
This article should have been called 'YOU can cope with migrants', and be addressed to the poorest sections of the community. Why does Trevor Phillips always ignore white flight? Better off people can simply opt out of coping with migrants, because migrants gravitate towards low cost neighbourhoods. I know this because I live in run down inner city area.
Trevor, I have news for you. We are already well on our way to US style segregation. As an English person, I am tired of being told how tolerant I am by the pro-immigration lobby. The Dutch got tired of this slight of hand. So will indigenous Brits.
Jon Baker, Bristol, UK
Yes we can cope with immigrants but not when they are arriving in the vast volumes they have recently. Skilled migrants yes, but only to fill those jobs where we have shortages, we do not need hundreds of thousands of migrants skilled or not taking jobs at low wages and putting Brits on the dole.
J. Cox, London, England
I don't agree, "the Us is a racially segregated society. I don't want that for this country. when I go to America to see my relations I can be there for four or five weeks and never speak to a white person". I hate that."
That is the biggest lie, everyone in the world knows American's are warm and friendly people, even if you go the bus stop people will talk to you.
There are people who being here for twenty years and never had white person to talk to or make friends with, so don't lie Trevor, if you keep pointing fingers to other countries like United States, France ect things will not get better, so let's becareful what we say
Mihia, London, UK
I don't know what part of America Trevor's relations inhabit, but it strikes me that someone whose job it is to promote cohesion and moderation uses suspiciously extreme terms when disccusing the US. Note that America is 'ABSOLUTELY' not a model. Having grown up in various States with different minority make-ups, I do not recall segregation occuring to the extent indicated in this interview. In fact, the schools i attended were largely 50% Hispanic or black as the case may have been, and students were generally well integrated and this seemed to reflect the broader community. Perhaps in certain areas of the country this differs, but for Trevor to make a blanket statement as he does here must say more about him than it does about something as complex as an entire country. And I hasten to add that the immigrant editorials I have read tend to rate the American experience more favourably than the European one, for what that's worth.... something European policy makers don't happily stomach
self-loathing american, uk,
Sorry Eleanor but as far as I know Ireland isn't part of Britain and never has been. I am aware hundreds of thousands of Irish people and their families live in the UK but it doesn't make them British. I'm also aware Trevor Phillips & the CRE never gave them or Irish Travellers the time of day.
If I didn't know who you were talking about I'd think you'd interviewed someone from the BNP. I'm sure the reason why his former 'brothers' dislike him is because he has sold out. He jumped on the race bandwagon and has now jumped off it and moved onto another gravy train. To me he is, and always has been, an uncle Tom figure; talking the talk but doing nothing practical to help ethnic minorities.
If he had principles, he wouldn't change them and come out with the BNP style claptrap that multiculturalism is dead. What has he done to make it work? Nothing. Instead he sticks the boot in.
A Thomas, Durham,
Whenever I hear someone exclaiming that a problem can be coped with, I turn on the sceptic in me.
I have heard it so often before from drug addicts, alcoholics and gamblers, and it is a sign that a problem is getting out of control - or rather, the problem is taking control.
Mike Poulsen, Reading, Berkshire
I have always like Trevor Phillips. Its a shame that he would not stand for mayor of London as an Independent I am certain that he would be good for the London.
Didt the Germans have that in the 60s 'guest workers' is the name? Good idea but unfortunalty it would fall foul of the various European treaties that a former PM signed. As part of those agreements we have to pay child benefits and family tax credits to any family in Eastern Europe who has a family member working here. (Roumania after 2008).Does anyone know how the Social security and HM Revenue and Customs check that the claimant does have a family of four living in Lublin? It nice to see Trevor exsposing the myth that economic migrants spend their money here. They dont. It goes straight back. Plus the benefits paid into your account at home your laughting. Its a dream a come true. Brilliant suggestion Trevor but no government will have the courage to do it.
Grumpyat50, London , UK
The future is easy movement around Europe, and decisions on who enters Europe made by the EU (driven by EU architects France, principally, and Germany). There is a lot of room in the EU and I think we can expect tens of millions from Africa and the ME in the medium term. They desperately want to come and we urgently need them. We will not be consulted about this as we have already signed the papers for full EU membership, and in any case, our own economy now depends on an indefinite flow of the less fortunate to work in our fields, hospitals, factories and construction sites. The present wave will settle, expect much more and so we will have to have another (and another....) wave of the less fortunate. A recipe for a crowded, maybe unhappy but possibly wealthy island whose worldwide reputation for colonial selfishness may be just a litte diminished.
Colin , Shrewsbury,
It isn't a question of whether these people fit in, it's whether the truth is being told about whether they are needed. I live in a city with 20% unemployment or more, which is the REAL figure not the Goverment manipiulated one, ( Income support and Incapacity benefit are still Government benefits for the unemployed), and we have immigrants on every street corner selling 'The Big Issue'. They are even out in the suburbs. Can someone tell me how these people are useful or are we just being fed a pack of lies as usual? In cities where there are already very few reasonable jobs for our own people, immigrants should be banned. Most of the work in this country is in the south so maybe that's where the immigrants should be. Not in areas where there are already problems and no jobs.
Judy , Liverpool, england
So Trevor Phillips is telling us not to panic! Too late my friend!
I and many of my contemporaries now feel that we are strangers in our own country. The lovely traditional values that we in the UK had, of tolerance, good manners, compassion, hospitality and fairness, are constantly degraded by people who come to our beautfiul country to grab what they can, whilst expecting us to accommodate their various religions and customs, their taste for violence - honour killings, gang warfare, dog fighting and so on, even providing them with (expensive) interpreters for when they end up in hospital or at the benefits office.
By all means allow those people to come here who have skills and talents that we need, but demand that they show their desire to enjoy the benefits of being British, by at least learning our language and being prepared to live within the framework of our customs and way of life. If this is not to their liking, then they need not stay here.
C Knight, London, UK
There's still too much dogma around race & immgration. For example: 'immigration is good'. The discussion always starts from this premise. Why must it be good? Let's have the arguments pro & con? It may be good, bad, or indfifferent depending on lots of different factors - who's migrating? when? what for? where from? Another example - this journalist says it's 'progress' that a black girl is likely to do better than a white boy. It's not progress. It just replaces one prejudice with another. The raw nerves & the fear & the PC assumptions have to be taken out of debates on race, just as they've largely been taken out of debates on gender. We should all have the right to discuss race & immigration freely. We should be able to put, and challenge, arguments without being trapped by PC articles of faith or attacked with the knee-jerk label: 'racist'. Genuine debate means airing all kinds of views. That's a good thing and more likely to mean progress than the weary dogma we get now.
cath, london, uk
Very good story. But why Britain is shying away from its promises made to Highly Skilled Migrants who came on the promises made by UK to work and live here? The government has changed rules ostensibly to push back all those who came with HSMP visa to live here permanently, and they were invited by UK and none other. The writer should have touched on this issue also, and the story would have been a complete one. Will someone write the appalling situation of HSMPians victimised by the UK government?
Ratna Thapa, London, UK
The UK government might take a leaf out of Australia's book where imigration is no longer a burning issue . It is all very well for Trevor Phillips to bang on about the traditional British tolerance, but even the most open minded can be pushed too far. From here it looks as if too little is being done too late.
In Oz minds are at rest because illegral immigration has been virtually eliminated by very firm policing of the borders, whilst still offering refugees places via legitimate channels. It is obvious that the fear in Britain is of" in your face" immigrants swamping the traditions and values that mean so much,
and the Labour Party must plead guilty to turning a blind eye to this over the last ten years and failing to recognise the full implications of their European policies, losing control.
As a Pom (the most persecuted minority down under !) I can only be thankful that I left the UK before Blair sold out her
self respect and security.
Graham Thomas, Toowoomba, Australia
I've just this minute returned from central Croydon, where I, as an Englishman, was clearly in the minority. At least half the people I saw were non European, and most of the rest were jabbering in foreign tongues. I'm heartily sick of this invasion of my home, and do not want the oft-promised "crack-down" on immigration: I want it stopped altogether, now. Then we can start on the long job of returning these unwanted Third World hordes back to where they came from.
Oh, yes. and in the next election no way am I going to vote for the traditional parties who brought about this mess in the first place.
Bernard C.Lacey, Croydon, UK
Phillips and the rest of the pro-immigration lobby just don't seem to get it do they?
The real issue is simple: numbers. This is already one of the most densely populated countries on Earth. Were it not for immigration the population of the UK would be moving in the right direction (ie reducing). Given the growing shortage of natural resources worldwide and at home (homes/land being the most obvious UK issue) we should be seeking a population of around 50 million; not the rising 60+ million we have at present.
Race is not the issue - it is bodies, black or white. We should be promoting birth control through education and the welfare/tax systems and certainly not importing people to an overcrowded island.
Some argue that mass immigration has benefited the economy: this is arguable but, again, not the main issue. No doubt we would have short-term economic gain if we were to build offices and shops in all of the countries national parks but would this be desirable?
mike hartley, sheffield, england
There seem to be two main problems.
1) Identity (a) - most Welsh, Scottish, Irish (in UK), & English think of themselves firstly as Welsh, Scottish, Irish & English, and only secondly as British - though being British is highly valued by all but rabid nationalists. ''Britishness' is undoubtedly a unifying factor.
(bThe sheer numbers of of immigrants in the last few decades is quite unprecedented. How a very large number of immigrant peoples will (or will not) integrate or assimilate is at present unknown.
2) Has anyone in government actually thought at all about the optimum population of this very densely populated country (arguably already over-populated) - the housing, infrastructure & loss of countryside involved? We are already exceptionally vulnerable to shortages in world food, energy and many other resources. Why do politicians think bigger is always better? If England (at least) had half its present population, the quality of life would probably be higher.
Dave, Wrexham,
This Government and the CRE remind me of a family that has just moved into a large rambling house and decide to knock some internal walls down without understanding the basics of structure. They knock down support walls as well as dividing walls and before long the whole beautiful old building is going to fall down on top of them (and us).
Gareth, Swansea, U K
The average accumulated value for long term English is about £ 200,000 and average gdp of£ 20,000.
These immigrants contributed zero to the Capital value and do little to help GDP. In fact a big drain and the Union clamberers for more and more are behind this less & less.
The English masses are mad following rich as Foot, Benn, Blair, etc. as no winning vote or decision ever gets the head.
The 3rd world needs its skills more than we do and there are so many of them. This island is a dot and they are big oceans being penalised while a few make it big in the West.
They are getting millions from sport and we are gone and everyone cheers are their own deaths.
Soon we will have to scrap for life and these migrants will be stronger than us and Natures laws are unforgiving.
Brown and Gates are give away our to the 3rd world not make them build up their own countries and let us trade and build ours as we need in future generations.
It is no joy for Socialism just sarky anti BG!
Dr MI Barton MA. MBA.PhD, Oxon, uk
Gordon's roadshow was able to cut through the political correctness which has been foisted on our society and spell out something which is very apparent to so many of us. Recently I heard it said that we in Britain 'embrace multi-culturism'. I believe that to be a flawed perception. Substitute the word 'tolerate' and I think you have a more accurate assessment. Unfortunately this tolerance is being strained and it is essential that our politicians desist from their complacency and address the situation as it really is.
Tom, West Midlands,
Trevor is quoted: 'When I go to America to see my relations I can be there for four or five weeks and never speak to a white person. I hate that'.
The problem in Britain is that if we get too many more migrants and loose many more British families to emigration, the tolerance Trevor enjoys here in Britain will be lost. Perhaps it is already lost.
Here is a thought for Trevor: If I try to go to see my family in Europe I cannot, they all died in Auschwitz and camps like it. If I go to see my family in Israel, we are all at risk from being ‘wiped off the map’ by Iran. The present climate in Britain is hostile to Jews, and so many are emigrating from the country. The History of the Holocaust is not being taught to some children in the UK for fear of ‘offending’ certain immigrant communities. Jewish schools in the UK now need bomb proofing.
If Trevor wants Britain to remain tolerant, he needs to focus on the most racist parts of the immigrant community. I am out of here.
Paul, London,
It's too late, segregation has already happened.
The sheer volume of immigrants is turning/has turned most of the 'native' population against immigration.
In my opinion Britain used to be the best place on earth to live, but not now.
Andy M, Washington, UK
Trevor is correct in the 2 track mmigration system.
I have spent the last 20 years working all over the world.
I got in on work visas.
this gave me limited rights-ie no vote,no healthcare,no welfare or education rights that citizens get.
thats fair-I paid tax,but didnt want to stay in russia,khazakstan,china,mongolia,and so on(enjoyed my time there though).
let folk who want to work in uk go there.
let them get work visas-2 years,renewable.
and if they want to apply for residency-let them.
and if that works out-citizenship.
its normal,it works.
and as trevor says-immigration for life is gone for lots of folk-just like jobs for life
in the future,you will move from country to country.
inter race marriages,mixed race kids,backgrounds full of rich cultures,diverse and complementary ,will become common and accepted.
the new multiculturism!
again as trevor says-countries apply their laws ,and you either follow them ,or dont go to that place.
fraser kelly, singapore, singapore
I dont think the perosn who actually rote this article would himself (if it so happens thathe emmigrate to france or anywhere else) speak the language of the new country when he is in the company of is own family, he would speak his own mother tongue. By the way very very rarely do you find a stranger starting a conversaton with you in london, no matter if you speak in english or not. May be if the writer of this article would have greeted any of those peope they would have answered in english. Also people who aeborin uk would tend to speak english no matter where their parents originate from.
I am myself a foreigner in this country nd very rarly do i get the chance to speak my native language as my wife is from a different place; so when i meet somebody from my country i rejoice in speaking my mother tongue, without meaning to offend anybody.
Be a bit more broadminded. If a foreigner cant or dont speak english they cant work or earn in this country.....
mohamed maudarbocus, london, england