In an open letter to Sir Keir Starmer, the leader of the opposition in Camden, Liberal Democrat councillor Tom Simon (above) calls on the PM to rethink his ‘tough’ stance

Dear Prime Minister,

The headline in last week’s CNJ (‘Trump-Style’ Immigration Crackdown) is no doubt part of your new home secretary’s promise to get tough on immigration, which builds on your own rhetoric over the summer.

But unmarked vanloads of government officers raiding our communities causes fear and anger among law-abiding residents and creates a hostile environment for people who have every right to be here, including British citizens.

All the more so because of what is happening in the USA with ICE raids, the far-right march in London n 13th September and the rise of Reform UK.

At the Labour Party conference, you spoke warmly about the strength our diverse communities provide, the value of people who have settled here over the generations and the need to reject the divisive language and policies of Reform UK.

Many here in Camden, in your own constituency, will have welcomed those fine sentiments. Words matter, but they lose their meaning if the actions that follow do not back them up.

At the same conference, your party announced policies on immigration and refugees that play into the hard-right narrative that our country is swamped by hordes of illegal immigration, that people stay too long, commit crimes and do not contribute to our society.

But you know the truth – most immigrants and refugees in the UK come here by authorised routes, most are here legally and the overwhelming majority are law-abiding, hard-working people who play a positive role in the UK. You know that our great NHS depends heavily on immigrants.

It always has. Our care service does too. And our economy needs their labour.

Perhaps you look at the narrative on immigration that has been built up over years by the right-wing press, the Conservatives and Reform UK, and are afraid that if you appear anything less than “tough” on immigration you will lose support.

I would like to ask you whether your “Island of Strangers” speech got supporters of Farage to turn to Labour?

Or your promises to “crack down” on “illegal” immigration? The evidence suggests otherwise, that you can’t outdo Reform UK on immigration and the more you try, the more you strengthen Farage’s hand. The Conservatives found this out the hard way.

Please don’t make the same mistake as them.

Immigration squads in Queen’s Crescent

In 1971 the late Jonathan Miller, a great Camden resident, debated with Enoch Powell about immigration.

Mr Miller made the point that politicians do their public duty constructively if they focus the “charisma of their office” on the opportunities for cooperation, rather than the “potential for future strife”.

It must be possible to acknowledge the difficulties we face in the UK without playing into the idea that immigrants and refugees are the cause of them.

Yes, large-scale immigration has its challenges, but it has many benefits too. Let’s get balance and humanity into the narrative.

And please, let’s not emulate Trump’s America with its ICE raids terrifying communities.

Of course the government should deport people who are here illegally, but there must be a better way.

The Home Office could try working with local authorities, which actually understand the nature of the communities they serve.

Yours sincerely,

Cllr Tom Simon Leader of the Opposition on Camden Council Liberal Democrats