I have always been horrified by some of the conditions people live in, in war-torn countries. In these terms, I feel very privileged to have been brought up in a country where I can express myself and live my life without the fear of being killed or seriously injured. However, we need to decipher between asylum seekers who are genuine and those who are not.
The Home Secretary Sajid Javid came out in the New Year and questioned whether some asylum seekers are genuine. He argued that some asylum seekers that have come from France should have stayed in France, because he feels that it is a reasonably safe country. That is something I completely agree with. But, these comments from Javid caused a backlash from campaigners and opposition MPs.
As a Secretary of State in charge of many aspects of this country, he has a right to question whether asylum seekers are genuine or not. We have to bear in mind that whilst we are tolerant (which is a good thing), we have to consider the fact that we are already a very crowded country. The UK is an island, and whilst our infrastructure is strong and prosperous, we should look to avoid putting further unnecessary strain on it.
Our focus as a nation always needs to be on the future. That focus must be put on the children of our legal citizens, and foreign nationals who have contributed to our system. Immigration in my view is not a problem, we are a tolerant and multi-cultural society, something that I am proud to be apart of. However, it is the level of immigration which is disconcerting, and has been a cause of friction for years.
Our population is rising with the birth rate in the UK remaining high. These children of the future need to be provided with a healthy environment to live in, not an overcrowded polluted country that we are in danger of turning into. You may think that illegal immigrants are a small portion of people, but what about the long term? They may have children, and it only puts further strain on the country. We are already crowded enough even without the addition of dishonest asylum seekers. Our immigration law as a whole needs to be reviewed so we do not end up too overcrowded.
Granting asylum to people who should not be here puts further strain on public services, including the NHS. As a country, it is time to put ourselves first.
The immigration policy set out post-Brexit on the £30k salary cap is in some ways an attempt to decrease net migration, something that in my opinion needs to happen. However, junior doctors’ salaries start below that, and we are in need of young EU-based doctors. Genuine immigrants need to be treated fairly, the above is an example of that.
As the Government have rightly said, anyone who has emigrated to the UK rightly under EU freedom of movement law should have a right to stay here. However, the execution of this in terms of EU immigrants paying a fee to stay here needs to be correct and fair.
I am not saying, do not grant asylum to anyone. People should be granted asylum if this is the first safe country to get to. However, people who have come through safe countries to get to the UK and ask for asylum, this is something that needs to be looked at, and Javid’s comments need to be considered soberly.
People who have come here legally and contributed heavily to society have every right to stay here. These people should not be punished. However, those who have come here through other safe countries should be transferred back to the nearest and safest country they came from — unless that country already has a high amount of asylum seekers in relation to population density.
Whether people agree with Sajid Javid’s comments or not, they need to stop being offended and consider the issue more objectively. The time before Britain gets overcrowded is ticking fast.
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Adam Jones
A 20-year-old Journalism and Media Production (BA Hons) student at the University for the Creative Arts in Farnham, who's had over 500 articles published online. This has ranged from sport, politics, mental health and education. Previous topics analysed include: the UK's withdrawal from the European Union, immigration, abortion, discrimination including LGBTQ+ issues and the Black Lives Matter movement, Scottish independence, Iran, climate change, terrorism, police policy and gun control.
