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Britain’s dimmest left-wing MPs are up in arms today. No, not about the lack of cash announced in the Defence Investment Plan. Nor about Ofgem raising the energy price cap by 13 per cent come July. Instead, these esteemed parliamentarians are furious that Shabana Mahmood wants so-called ‘refugees’ to repay £10,000 to the state for covering their living costs. Those who come to Britain under Labour’s new capped ‘safe and legal route’ and refuse to hand over the money once they begin earning will be denied permanent residency in the UK.
The policy, announced yesterday and set to be means-tested, has sparked the inevitable uproar. Labour MP Kim Johnson fumed: ‘This is a tax on refugees. It’s performative cruelty. We shouldn’t be punishing people for fleeing war and persecution. The relentless demonisation of refugees must stop.’
Green leader Zack Polanski duly chimed in: ‘This is a Refugee Tax. It was originally proposed by the Tories, and the only reason asylum seekers could be claimed to ‘owe’ any money is because they are banned from working. Another cruel Labour policy that must be reversed on day one by Andy Burnham.’
Adding her dulcet tones to the chorus, Diane Abbott declared: ‘This a just a tax on refugees. Imagine applying to the Kindertransport children fleeing Nazi Germany, and withholding refugee status they are entitled to. Still chasing Farage down a dead end.’
