Illegal Migration Bill Update
This week saw continued opposition to the government's Illegal Migration Bill led by the Archbishop of Canterbury, and drawing together faith leaders from across the House of Lords.
The text below was shared in an open letter to The Times, and forms the basis of an amendment now tabled to be debated in the House of Commons, where the Bill will soon return.
The amendment calls for the government to develop a long-term strategy for tackling the refugee crisis, alongside human trafficking, on the basis that real change must focus not just on stopping small boats crossings, but address causes of displacement upstream.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, explained yesterday why he felt opposition was merited:
“As faith leaders we hold different beliefs on many things, but we are united in our concern for people seeking sanctuary. Britain must have an asylum system based on justice and compassion. We are standing together to call on the Government to honour our obligations to the world’s most vulnerable people – and play our part in tackling a global crisis that is only set to worsen in the coming years, as millions more people around the world are forced to flee their homes. The amendment I have tabled to the Illegal Migration Bill is intended to focus our efforts on that goal.”
See below the full text of the open letter to The Times:
"As faith leaders, we represent people and communities whose belief, worship and action point us towards the kind of society we wish to build for the common good. The Illegal Migration Bill falls short of our obligation towards the most vulnerable. It fails to meet the basic test of an evidence-based and workable policy. We need an alternative approach that reflects our country’s history, values and responsibility.
With more than 100 million people displaced around the world, this crisis will not be solved without significant collective endeavour. To improve the Bill, we support an amendment requiring the government to produce a ten-year strategy, collaborating internationally to stop the boats here and globally, and tackle refugee crises and human trafficking. The UK should take a lead in setting out a just, compassionate approach, ensuring that people seeking sanctuary are protected, claims decided quickly and justly, human traffickers are punished, and the root causes of mass migration are properly addressed."
Signatories included:
The Most Rev Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury
The Most Rev Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York
The Right Rev Paul Butler, Bishop of Durham
Commissioner Anthony Cotterill, Territorial Commander of the Salvation Army
Rabbi Charley Baginsky and Rabbi Josh Levy, CEOs of Progressive Judaism
Mrs Trupti Patel, president, Hindu Forum of Britain
Lord Singh of Wimbledon, Director of the Network of Sikh Organisations UK
Imam Qari Asim, Senior Imam, Makkah Mosque, Leeds
Imam Dr. Sayed Razawi, Chief Imam (Scotland), Director-General of the Scottish Ahlul Bayt Society.
-----
More information on opposition to the Illegal Migration Bill available via Jubilee+ Latest | News, Blogs, Video, Audio (jubilee-plus.org) including a downloadable and embeddable version of the video below, which you are welcome to share widely.
