Let us be clear.
We understand why Britain offers sanctuary to people genuinely fleeing persecution, war and oppression. That is not what is being questioned here.
What we are questioning is whether, in fulfilling that responsibility, government has lost sight of another, its fundamental responsibility to protect the people already living here.
The British public is entitled to ask who is entering this country. We are entitled to expect proper identification and appropriate security checks. We are entitled to question what happens when someone’s identity or background cannot be adequately verified. And we are entitled to ask why people should be moved into communities while those uncertainties remain.
Those concerns should not simply be dismissed as intolerance or racism.
Government must listen.
Because there is something much bigger at stake here than immigration policy.
TRUST
People pay their taxes. They obey the law. They contribute to this country. And in return they expect their government to perform one of the most fundamental functions of any state:
Keep the country and its people safe.
If people increasingly believe that is not happening, government cannot simply tell them they are wrong to be concerned.
It needs to demonstrate that the border is being controlled.
It needs to demonstrate that appropriate checks are taking place.
It needs to demonstrate that the safety of women, children and communities is at the centre of its decisions.
And when its own Home Office considers it necessary to provide guidance to asylum seekers about sexual consent, violence against women and domestic abuse, we are entitled to ask some very serious questions about what safeguards accompany that guidance.
A leaflet is not protection. A leaflet will not cut it.
A leaflet does not establish someone’s background.
And a leaflet does not remove risk.
There comes a point when government has to understand something very simple.
The British people are not spectators in this debate.
We are the people government is elected to represent.
We are the people who fund it.
We are the people who live with the consequences of its decisions.
And ultimately, we are the people who decide whether it remains in office.
We understand our country’s humanitarian responsibilities.
But government must understand its responsibility to us.
If people no longer believe their government is listening to them or protecting them, they have one very powerful way of making themselves heard.
VOTE THEM OUT