Maya Goodfellow’s timely critique of Labour (Starmer doesn’t have to follow the Tories on immigration to win – a humane approach could still lead him to No 10, 29 December)could go further than asking the party to challenge the myths and to create fewer hostile rules. Isn’t it likely that the growth of positive public attitudes to immigration has been encouraged mainly by images of suffering: Afghans trapped in Kabul; Ukrainians who have lost their homes; families drowned in the Channel?
We need to recognise the courage and determination that enable migrants to get this far. Histories of past migrations (eg to the US in the 19th century) have demonstrated that most migrants enrich and invigorate their destination countries. From 2016 to 2021, I hosted an African asylum seeker. He arrived aged 20, undernourished, lacking any education beyond the age of 12, and was diagnosed with PTSD. He’s now a qualified electrician (which is classed as a “shortage occupation”), a dedicated gym-goer, has a partner and a daughter, and loves life. He wouldn’t have got far in a points-based system, but the kind of contribution he has made to our society and economy could be commonplace, not wasted in hotel accommodation and dumps such as the Manston asylum centre.
Dr Cary Bazalgette
Honorary research fellow, UCL Institute of Education
