Suella Braverman has been criticised over “dehumanising” comments made in reference to immigrants today.
The home secretary accused Sir Keir Starmer of wanting to make Britain a “dumping ground” for the EU’s unwanted migrants as he launched his plans to tackle the issue.
He was accused of an “open door” approach that could mean taking 100,000 asylum seekers from Greece and Italy as he suggested Britain could “burden share” with the European Union.
The party wants a deal with the EU that could allow the UK to return some migrants who are deemed to have no claim here, much like the Dublin Regulation, which the UK opted out of when it left the bloc.
Labour has also pledged to no longer use hotels, barges and former military sites to house asylum seekers if it gets in.
The party said it would recruit more than 1,000 Home Office caseworkers – a 50 per cent increase on current staffing levels – to end the asylum backlog, which shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said would end the use of hotels and other sites.
A new returns unit, again backed by 1,000 staff, would also be created to triage and fast-track removals.
But Braverman has hit out at the plans.
She said: ‘Finally we see Sir Keir Starmer’s migration plan. He’ll let Brussels decide who comes to the UK.
‘He’ll agree to make Britain the dumping ground for many of the millions of illegal migrants that Europe doesn’t want. And none of this will stop the boats.’
The comments were labelled “dehumanising” by David Osland on X (formerly Twitter).
“They’re human beings, not discarded trash”, he pointed out.
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