Epping is a warning to complacent Britain
Away from Downing Street, the mood is febrile. Protests outside asylum hotels by locals furious at the sudden imposition of large numbers of young men in their towns have been exploited by far-Right agitators, leading to clashes with the police. The observation from one MP that the country is a 'tinderbox' seems close to the mark.
Yet beyond a vague sense that something isn't quite right, the Government carries on as normal. Ms Rayner is continuing her project on social cohesion; the people smugglers continue their trade across the Channel; borrowing continues to rise as the population shoulders the burden of the new arrivals. There is no sense of urgency, and no sense of a plan ready to be put into action.
Nor is there any real willingness to discuss the precise issues in question. Ms Rayner's comments still appeared to focus on economic insecurity as a primary factor in explaining dissatisfaction, instead of finding solutions to the primary issue of uncontrolled immigration. There is an echo of the political correctness that silenced conversation in the towns where grooming gangs operated.
Nor does there seem to be much prospect of imminent change. The potential fiasco of a Tommy Robinson-led demonstration in Epping may well grab headlines should it come to pass, and indeed may be welcomed by those desperate to pretend that the only issues are those created by troublemakers; it will do nothing to address local unease at the changes imposed on the area. Nor will it do so in places experiencing similar shifts.
The decision to disperse asylum seekers into hotels around the country remains a baffling one, and it is almost certain that a detention estate separate from the general population would see far fewer potential flashpoints for unrest. So, too, is the unwillingness to slap down judges undermining our borders, or to speak frankly about the long-term costs of our asylum policy.
Instead, the ship drifts. There is no indication that anyone in Government has any plan for regaining control over our borders or addressing the concerns of the population. And there is no indication, either, that one is on the way.
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