Let’s be clear: The Hostile Environment is Harmful to All of Us

In recent years, the word ‘clarity’ has frequently come to my mind, or rather the lack of it. We have been through the rollercoaster of a global pandemic with so many unknowns. We have seen the impacts of climate change, financial instability, devastating conflict, violent racism, and turbulent politics, as well as all the inevitable challenges and changes of life that impact our private worlds. Gaining clarity – a clear vision of who we are, what we believe, what we stand for -and what we stand against – can be invaluable and very hope-generating in days like these. As a mentor once shared with me, when the world outside seems to be confused and agitated, we don’t need to internalise that and make it our story too. As advocates for justice, clarity is essential to equip and empower our voices and strategic actions.

In recent weeks, the UK government’s Illegal Immigration Bill (as part of the ‘hostile environment’ to illegal immigration) has been a source of great concern and great confusion on many levels. The government states that:

‘The Illegal Migration Bill will change the law so that those who arrive in the UK illegally will not be able to stay here and will instead be detained and then promptly removed, either to their home country or a safe third country.

The bill has the following objectives, to:

• put a stop to illegal migration into the UK by removing the incentive to make dangerous small boat crossings
• speed up the removal of those with no right to be here, in turn this will free up capacity so that the UK can better support those in genuine need of asylum through safe and legal routes
• crack down on the opportunities to abuse modern slavery protections, by preventing people who come to the UK through illegal and dangerous journeys from misusing modern slavery safeguards to block their removal
• ensure that the UK continues to support those in genuine need by committing to resettling a specific number of the most vulnerable refugees in the UK every year.’ (1)

For me personally, whilst of course there should never be precious lives lost at sea as people take desperate measures to seek sanctuary, asylum processes should be timely, effective, efficient and fair, and vulnerable refugees should be supported by a committed government, this bill is far from a beacon of progressive human rights.

Every proposal or policy is written by people with a purpose and is underpinned by human beliefs and understandings about the world. Through speaking with and listening to many others in the anti-trafficking and refugee support sectors, concerns about this bill lay not just in the practicalities and finances, but especially the foundational beliefs and purposes that underpin it. Some of these key concerns include the way that the language of this bill effectively divides human beings into those who are worthy and unworthy of human rights, compassion, protection, and care from the most catastrophic of human experiences, including the most heinous of crimes. If we consider the impacts of the ‘hostile environment’ to date, including data around how these policies impact human health, healthcare access and the very necessities of survival – we see that these policies and the fear they generate can in reality lead to divisions between who is worthy to live and die (2).

When we place these policies and the new bill in the wider story of history, academics and activists are raising significant concerns about the racism, colonialism (the complex power imbalance and ruler-mindset colonising nations such as Britain hold over its former colonies), and capitalism (our dominant economic system that is motivated by profit) woven throughout it. All of these -isms can create hierarchies of human value and worth – a far cry from the aspirational equality of all people within the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (3) that the UK has committed itself to uphold. These hierarchies along with stories that increase fear of people who are ‘not like us’ prompt us to turn our backs on fellow humans. If these beliefs are allowed to become embedded and normalised, in my opinion, we risk our society becoming increasingly narrow-minded, aggressively ‘me and mine first’, and set the stage for a cold-hearted, fearful, divided world severely lacking in the creative beauty of human diversity and the celebration of our differences.

The anti-trafficking, refugee and other sectors have a wealth of knowledge through lived experience, and multi-professional, multi-disciplinary experts ready to support the development of effective, efficient, and fair systems of asylum and other related border duties. Our advocacy brings clarity to the detrimental underlying belief frameworks, stories and purposes of the hostile environment, and the risks to human rights, health and life secondary to its practical outworking. From the ground up it is clear that as a nation we can do much better – for everyone’s benefit.

To learn more about the hostile environment to bring clarity to your advocacy consider the following new resources:

Solidarity Knows No Borders 20 part teaching series from March – June 2023, including webinars specific for those in the NHS, health and social care sectors: https://firmcharter.org.uk/stand-up-speak-out/

References:

1. Illegal Immigration Bill available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/illegal-migration-bill
2. Healthcare access for children and families on the move and migrants available at https://bmjpaedsopen.bmj.com/content/4/1/e000588
3. Universal Declaration of Human Rights available at https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights