James Cleverly has been mocked for appearing to forget his own government’s policy to welcome Syrian asylum seekers.
The Home Secretary shared a 2015 article in which Labour’s shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper called for Britain to take in 10,000 refugees from Syria during the 2015 European migrant crisis.
After Ms Cooper and Sir Keir Starmer made a major speech on Labour’s asylum policy, Mr Cleverly used the article to suggest she could not be trusted with “stopping the boats”.
“When Keir Starmer talks about illegal migration, this is who he wants to be the home secretary,” he said on X/Twitter.
But users of the social media platform quickly pointed out that just days later Mr Cleverly himself welcomed government plans to take in twice as many refugees as Ms Cooper had called for.
Responding to Mr Cleverly’s post, the shadow home secretary said: “Er, James…… This is your government’s policy to help 20,000 Syrian refugees, announced just after this article!
“Which four days later you welcomed.”
In a statement at the time, Mr Cleverly said: “I welcome David Cameron’s announcement that the UK will provide sanctuary to thousands more Syrians currently in refugee camps. It is right and proper that we prioritise the help to these people rather than those already in safe countries in mainland Europe or those who might otherwise turn to traffickers who have a vested interest in using more dangerous routes.”
As the humanitarian crisis overflowed to Europe in 2015, Ms Cooper said that if every town in the UK accepted just 10 families each, then the UK could offer nearly 10,000 vulnerable Syrian refugees a place to live in peace and safety.
Days later then prime minister Lord Cameron said Britain would resettle 20,000 refugees fleeing the Syrian civil war.
Meanwhile the European Union voted to back a plan to relocate 120,000 refugees in the continent through a quota scheme which Britain will not take part in.
It came as Sir Keir set out his post-election plans to tackle smuggling gangs bringing thousands of migrants to Britain in small boats. The Labour leader declined to commit to “stopping the boats” as he set out his party’s plans to tackle cross-Channel migration.
The Labour leader said crossings needed to be reduced “materially” and he would “like it to come down completely”, but added he would not put a “false number” on his plans.
Speaking in Deal, Kent, on Friday, Sir Keir said a Labour government would expand counter-terror powers to cover people-smuggling gangs and create a new Border Security Command to co-ordinate efforts to halt the crossings.
In a message to smuggling gangs, he said: “These shores will become hostile territory for you – we will find you. We will stop you. We will protect your victims with the Border Security Command. We will secure Britain’s borders.”
He also reiterated his commitment to scrap the Government’s Rwanda policy “straight away”, saying it was a “gimmick” he had no interest in pursuing.
But asked what would happen to any people deported to Rwanda in the coming months, he said Labour was “not interested in repatriating people”.
