Lawmakers urge home secretary to address racism in immigration policies

A group of British lawmakers wrote to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper on Tuesday urging her to acknowledge the links between racism and the country's immigration legislation as the government prepares to introduce new laws on border security, asylum and immigration.

The 25 Black, Asian and ethnic minority members of parliament (MPs) highlighted concerns that Britain's immigration framework "cannot be uncoupled from racism and the exclusion of people of color."

Their letter came in response to the recent release of a previously suppressed Home Office report on the origins of the Windrush scandal.

The report revealed that immigration legislation from 1950 to 1981 was "designed at least in part to reduce the number of people with black or brown skin who were permitted to live and work in the UK."

This report, titled "The Historical Roots of the Windrush Scandal," was buried by the Home Office but has now resurfaced, prompting calls for a significant reassessment of how immigration policy is framed.

Written by Labour MP Clive Lewis and signed by lawmakers including Diane Abbott, Bell Ribeiro-Addy and Marsha de Cordova, the letter stresses the need for urgent reflection on how current immigration narratives risk creating "enabling environments for racism."

The MPs argue that "deep-seated institutional and cultural failures" within the Home Office led to the suppression of the report and contributed to policies that continue to disadvantage people of color.

The letter calls for action to prevent another Windrush scandal, a reference to the 2018 debacle in which thousands of legal UK residents, many of Caribbean heritage, were wrongly classified as illegal immigrants.

It also criticizes the government's handling of the Windrush compensation scheme, which has been repeatedly condemned for delays in payments to those affected.

The MPs demanded improvements to the scheme, stating that it represents "continued failures" in the government's efforts to repair the damage caused by the scandal.

Following a summer of heightened awareness of racial injustice, the MPs argue that this is an opportunity for the government to address systemic racism within immigration policies.

"The government has an important opportunity to recognize the conclusions of this report and shift the dial. This means action to acknowledge the links between racism and hostile migration policies," the letter states.