UK ‘already an island of strangers’, Jenrick claims as PM faces backlash
The plans, which are expected to reduce the number of people coming to the UK by up to 100,000 per year, include reforming work and study visas.
The UK is “already an island of strangers”, senior Conservative Robert Jenrick has claimed, after Sir Keir Starmer faced backlash for his plans to cut net migration.
The plans, which are expected to reduce the number of people coming to the UK by up to 100,000 per year, include reforming work and study visas and requiring a higher level of English across all immigration routes.
Labour backbenchers were among those who attacked Sir Keir for the language he used to announce the plans on Monday, including his claim the UK risks becoming an “island of strangers” if ministers do not act on migration.
But Mr Jenrick suggested he agreed with the PM’s characterisation, which has drawn comparisons with Enoch Powell’s infamous “rivers of blood” speech.
Asked what he made of the Prime Minister’s language, shadow justice secretary Mr Jenrick told Times Radio: “I think it’s true. In fact, I think in some places we already are. Aggressive levels of mass migration have made us more divided.”
Mr Jenrick, a former immigration minister, oversaw a significant rise in net migration – the difference between the number of people moving into the country minus those leaving – during his time in office.
He held the role between October 2022 and December 2023, which was the same year net migration hit a record high peak of 906,000.
Pointing to large numbers of people who had migrated to towns such as Luton and Bradford, Mr Jenrick said communities “in many parts of our country are experiencing profound change as a result of the levels of migration that we’ve seen”.
He added: “We’ve got to bring that back to the historic levels that we enjoyed as a country which enabled us to be a well-integrated and united country, rather than the one that we’re seeing today.”
Yvette Cooper elsewhere defended the Prime Minister’s language, and said it was not right to “make those comparisons” with Mr Powell’s rivers of blood speech, insisting Sir Keir’s announcement was “completely different” in substance.
In the Commons, the Prime Minister’s announcement drew criticism from across the political spectrum on Monday.
Labour backbenchers criticised the language Sir Keir used to announce the plans, particularly his claim that Britain could become an “island of strangers” without reform of the immigration system.
Sheffield Hallam MP Olivia Blake suggested the phrase could “risk legitimising the same far-right violence we saw in last year’s summer riots”.
Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell, who lost the Labour whip last year, accused Sir Keir of “reflecting the language” of Enoch Powell’s infamous “rivers of blood” speech in the 1960s.
Nigel Farage, whose Reform UK has focused heavily on immigration in its campaigns, said the Government “will not do what it takes to control our borders”.
The proposals also sparked concern from employers, particularly in the care sector, following the announcement that care worker visas would be scrapped.
