The latest tragic deaths in the small boats crisis (Six children among 12 dead in Channel as crowded boat ‘ripped open’, 3 September) raise the question as to whether the Labour government’s approach to “smashing the gangs” will be sufficient. Labour was right to scrap the Rwanda plan of the previous government as being an expensive gimmick and to focus instead on the human smugglers and traffickers.
Illegal migration is characterised by a variety of push and pull factors, as well as the nature of the migration process itself. While article 31 of the refugee convention recognises that refugees may sometimes need to resort to “irregular means” to reach protection, surrendering the whole migration process to criminal gangs is no solution at all, and leads to further exploitation once refugees and migrants reach the UK.
But Labour’s mistake has been to follow the Conservatives in suggesting that one big idea will be decisive in dealing with one of the most complex of systemic issues. Shouldn’t all options be on the table at this point? A systemic response will require an array of reinforcing interventions. This must include a serious conversation as to why the UK labour market remains so permeable to undocumented workers (who are often also exploited) and why stronger internal controls, including a national identity card, are also part of the solution.
If we have learned anything about migration policy over recent decades then it is that there is no magic bullet. Why do we continue to behave as if there is?
John Morrison
Co-author, The Trafficking and Smuggling of Refugees (UNHCR); author, The Cost of Survival (Refugee Council)
