“But is he capable of murder, doc?” asks the hard-bitten TV detective. You’ve seen the shows.
It’s really two questions. “Does he have the wherewithal?”: the strength, the skill, the capacity to plan. And, “Is he callous enough to kill?”: the absence of any restraint, compassion or conscience.
It’s a toss-up whether Keir Starmer will be defined by his “Island of Strangers” speech, as Enoch Powell was defined by Rivers of Blood. Powell’s speech was objectively far more racist. I read an interview with Powell where he denied his speech was racist at all. His defence boiled down to “I am not claiming racial superiority”. Refusing to house, employ, or even interact with people based on ethnicity was not racist in his worldview.
Our detective would have his answer: yes, he is capable of gross inhumanity. There is no internal restraint. The only thing stopping atrocity is whether he thinks he can get away with it.
Keir Starmer’s ‘Island of Strangers’ speech: channeling the racist rhetoric of Enoch Powell
I watched the whole of the “Island of Strangers” speech. Keir Starmer, the golden boy who championed a second referendum to prevent Brexit, referred to free movement as “squalid”. The former human rights lawyer said:
some people think immigration is some kind of freedom
And that it:
for years seems to have muddled our thinking.
He’s talking about you, Labour voters, who voted for him to stop the xenophobia of Braverman and Farage. It’s your thinking that’s muddled, not the xenophobes, according to him.
Starmer said:
Settlement is a privilege that’s earned, not a right.
The same Keir Starmer who changed the Labour Party rule book so that:
the rules of natural justice do not apply.
Facts don’t seem to matter. Sir Keir banged on about a million extra people. Importing cheap labour. Downward pressure on wages.
But like a good detective, I like to check. The Office of National Statistics data on net migration tells a different story.
42% of the total increase in visa grants was from overseas students. Well, Sir Keir, overseas students contribute £41.9bn to the UK economy each year. That’s all paid in foreign currency. It’s one of Britain’s most successful exports. You didn’t mention that in your speech.
A quarter of a million immigrants have come from Ukraine and Hong Kong. Sir Keir is very keen to get photographed with tanks and Ukrainians when it suits him. But apparently he’s not so keen on Ukrainians fleeing a war zone. They make us feel like strangers on our own island.
The data on migration tells a different story to Starmer’s rancid xenophobia…
Work visas account for 27% of the post 2019 increase in visa grants. The health and care sector accounts more than every other sector combined, 59.7% of that increase. In February 2022, the Johnson government made care workers eligible for skilled work visas.
Around 57,000 overseas care workers were recruited that year. They all pay £1,035 a year NHS surcharge, plus a £2,885 immigration fee. They also pay visa fees between £710 and £1,639. In total, it costs from £11,200 to £38,000 to settle in the UK.
There’s a crisis in social care. The wages are low. The work is hard. Terms and conditions are poor. If you haven’t seen it, watch Ken Loach’s 2019 film Sorry We Missed You.
What is Labour’s response? Do nothing. Have a review. Report back in 2028. And now blame foreigners for driving down wages.
Councils should take the initiative here. They are legally allowed to use social value requirements in their contracts. They can enforce good terms and conditions on suppliers. Some councils do. If you are a councillor, or know someone who is, start asking your council about becoming a Real Living Wage employer. It includes being paid for the actual time you work, and secure employment. I implemented that for the North of Tyne in 2019, shortly after I was elected Mayor.
If the government wanted higher wages, it could do it. It’s pretty simple. End privatisation, implement a wealth tax, and just pay higher wages.
Keir Starmer has the capacity to kill and he’s following through on it
Sir Keir said he’s:
not doing this targeting these voters, responding to that party. I’m doing this because it’s right… It is what I believe in.
Our detective has his answer. Starmer has the capacity to kill. Through austerity. Through supplying arms for genocide. Through poverty and diseases of despair.
When he praised Thatcher those in denial said it was just a ploy to win over Tory voters. Well it wasn’t. This is a Thatcherite government. When Starmer says he wants control, he means it. Next in line is your right to protest. Your right to privacy. Your right to own your own information. All up for sale, to Sir Keir’s donors.
Featured image via the Canary
