Latest news with #islandofstrangers
The Sun
39 minutes ago
- Politics
- The Sun
ANOTHER Starmer U-turn as PM ‘deeply regrets' calling Britain an ‘island of strangers' to warn of mass migration
SIR Keir Starmer says he 'deeply regrets' calling Britain an 'island of strangers' to warn of mass migration. The PM disowned his comments from May despite doubling down at the time amid fury from many of his own MPs. It marks the fourth U-turn in a matter of weeks following retreats on winter fuel, a grooming national inquiry and welfare cuts. Sir Keir told the Observer he was not aware of the similarities to Enoch Powell's infamous Rivers of Blood speech. The PM said: 'I had no idea – and my speechwriters didn't know either. But that particular phrase – no – it wasn't right. I'll give you the honest truth: I deeply regret using it.' He said he should have read through the speech properly and 'held it up to the light a bit more'. In the speech last month, the Labour leader was plugging his visa crackdown to cut monster levels of net migration. He declared: 'In a diverse nation like ours … we risk becoming an island of strangers, not a nation that walks forward together.' Last night, Tory Robert Jenrick said: 'It says it all that Starmer 'deeply regrets' saying Britain risks becoming an 'island of strangers'. 'By 2031, nearly a quarter of people in the UK will have been born abroad. 'Starmer regrets saying what's obviously true because he doesn't believe in borders or the nation state. 'Starmer now says he was just 'reading the words out', like a dummy. 'We need a leader, not a ventriloquist.' Britain's migrant crisis being fuelled by Putin's Russia and other hostile states in secret plot to destabilise Britain 1 'We need a leader that has vision.'
Bloomberg
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Starmer Says He 'Deeply Regrets' Using 'Island of Strangers' Phrase
Sir Keir Starmer has said he "deeply regrets" claiming the UK risked becoming an "island of strangers" in an immigration speech that drew comparisons to the language of Enoch Powell. The Prime Minister said he had not been in the "best state" to give the press conference, in which he insisted on the need for tighter border controls, as he reeled from an alleged arson attack on his family home.
Telegraph
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
I deeply regret ‘island of strangers' speech, says Starmer
Sir Keir Starmer has said he 'deeply' regrets saying that Britain risked becoming an 'island of strangers' because of mass immigration. The Prime Minister said it 'wasn't right' to use that 'particular phrase', despite No 10 previously insisting that he stood by his words. He said neither he nor his speech-writers had been aware that the remarks could have been interpreted as an 'echo' of the language of Enoch Powell. The comments made by the Prime Minister last month drew a fierce backlash from Left-wing critics, who accused him of 'reflecting the language' of the politician's infamous 'Rivers of Blood' speech. Sir Keir told The Observer: 'I wouldn't have used those words if I had known they were, or even would be interpreted as an echo of Powell. I had no idea – and my speech-writers didn't know either. But that particular phrase – no, it wasn't right. I'll give you the honest truth – I deeply regret using it.' Earlier this month, the Prime Minister suggested that he regretted the speech, admitting that he could have been more articulate. He insisted the message he was 'trying to get across' was supposed to have been about bringing people together. Sir Keir delivered the controversial speech last month while announcing a new programme of immigration restrictions. He said: 'Let me put it this way – nations depend on rules, fair rules. Sometimes they are written down, often they are not, but either way, they give shape to our values, guide us towards our rights, of course, but also our responsibilities, the obligations we owe to each other. 'In a diverse nation like ours ... we risk becoming an island of strangers, not a nation that walks forward together.' Sir Keir said very high levels of immigration in recent years had caused 'incalculable' damage to the UK. It drew a furious backlash, with John McDonnell, the former Labour shadow chancellor, accusing the Prime Minister of 'reflecting the language of Enoch Powell'. Zarah Sultana, the suspended Labour MP, called the speech 'sickening'. Powell, the former Conservative cabinet minister who died in 1998, said in his 1968 speech that the native British population had 'found themselves made strangers in their own country' because of immigration. Despite the backlash, No 10 refused to retract the remarks. Addressing the reaction linking Sir Keir's words to those of Powell, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'We completely reject that comparison.' Asked to confirm that the Prime Minister stood by his comments, he said: 'Yes.' Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, also argued that what Sir Keir had said was 'completely different' to Powell. She told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'I don't think it is right to make those comparisons. It is completely different and the Prime Minister said yesterday, I think almost in the same breath, talked about the diverse country that we are and that being part of our strength.'
Sky News
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Sky News
People do feel like strangers in Britain - but it's not just because of migration, polling finds
Last week, Sir Keir Starmer voiced his worry Britain could become an "island of strangers" if immigration was not tackled. Some claimed this was a controversial and dangerous stance - drawing parallels with Enoch Powell's Rivers of Blood speech. But research released today suggests close to half of those in Great Britain feel like "strangers" in their own country. The survey, carried out by pollsters at More In Common, asked 13,464 people in Great Britain for their feelings on the matter. And what is even more surprising is that the survey was carried out over a month before Sir Keir 's speech. The research is only being released today, and it is understood that Downing Street had not seen it before the prime minister's speech. However it will likely be welcomed as a justification of a position aimed outside of Westminster. 2:09 Isolation linked to wealth The prime minister's concerns about Great Britain being an "island of strangers" was inextricably linked to rising immigration. But the research out today shows the isolation felt by many is strongly linked to wealth - with the poorest in the country more likely to feel like strangers. The cost of living was mentioned as a contributory factor by many of those asked. And when it comes to ethnic breakdown of those saying they feel like strangers, Asian or Asian British people were more likely than either white or black British people to say they felt separate. Amy, a teacher from Runcorn, told researchers that when "your money's all going on your bills and the boring stuff like food and gas and leccy and petrol" there is nothing left "to do for ourselves". Who is Starmer targeting? Those who criticised Sir Keir for his "strangers" speech tended to accuse the prime minister of appealing to supporters of Reform or the Conservatives. Suspended Labour MP Zarah Sultana went as far as to claim the speech was a "foghorn to the far right". The analysis from More in Common found that people who supported Reform and the Conservatives last year are indeed much more likely to feel like strangers in the UK. While Labour, Lib Dem and Green supporters are all less likely to feel like strangers, around a third of them do still agree with the statement that they "sometimes feel like a stranger in my own country". And the polling also found that Reform and Conservative voters are much more likely to think that multiculturalism threatens national identity, while supporters of the other three parties tend to largely believe multiculturalism is a benefit. Across the board, supporters of all parties were more likely than not to think that everyone needs to do more to encourage integration between people of different ethnic backgrounds - and similarly a majority think it is everyone's responsibility to do so. Luke Tryl, the UK director of More in Common, said: "The prime minister's warning that we risk becoming an 'island of strangers' resonates with millions who say they feel disconnected from those around them. "But it would be a mistake to say that immigration and lack of integration are the sole causes of our fragmenting social fabric." John McDonnell, another former Labour MP, now suspended, told Sky News that having politicians "exploit" resentment fuelled by economic circumstance to shift "the blame onto migrants just exacerbates the problem". He said the government needs to "tackle the insecurity of people's lives and you lay the foundations of a cohesive society". With Reform now leading in the polls and the collapse of support for Sir Keir since becoming prime minister, it is unsurprising that what he says seems to match up with what turquoise voters feel. Work from home alone The post-pandemic shift to working from home and spending more time alone has also been blamed for an increased feeling of isolation. Ruqayyah, a support worker from Peterborough, said the shift to home offices had "destroyed our young generation". But there are many other reasons that people feel separate from the rest of their country. Young people are less trusting of strangers, and there is also a deep discontent with the political system. Many think the system is "rigged" in favour of the wealthy - although this belief is less common the higher the level of education someone has completed. The tension that exploded during last year's riots are also highlighted, and many people are worried about religious differences - a situation exacerbated by foreign conflicts like in the Middle East and between India and Pakistan. The research was carried out alongside the campaign group Citizens UK and UCL. Matthew Bolton, executive director of Citizens UK, said: "We all saw what can happen last summer when anger and mistrust boil over and threaten the fabric of our society. "The answers to this don't lie in Whitehall. "By listening to people closest to the ground about what causes division and what builds unity in their neighbourhood, we can build a blueprint for cohesion rooted in local leadership and community power."
BBC News
14-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Immigration: Plaid Cymru attack on my stance 'rubbish'
Sir Keir Starmer has accused Plaid Cymru's parliamentary leader of talking "rubbish", after she criticised his warning that the UK risks becoming an "island of strangers" without changes to its immigration Prime Minister's Questions, Liz Saville Roberts asked him if there was "any belief he holds which survives a week in Downing Street?""Yes, the belief that she talks rubbish," Sir Keir remarks he made on Monday, he told MPs the UK needs an immigration "system based on principles of control, selection and fairness". On Monday, the prime minister unveiled plans to ban recruitment of care workers from overseas, tighten access to skilled worker visas and raise the costs to employers in an effort to curb near record net he promised, would mean net migration falling "significantly" over the next four told broadcasters the UK risks "becoming an island of strangers" without strong rules on immigration and integration. In the Senedd on Tuesday, Welsh First Minster Eluned Morgan declined to endorse the island of strangers claim, saying she would not use "divisive language". Some Labour MPs have also called Sir Keir's choice of words on the subject Wednesday's Prime Minister's Questions, Saville Roberts told the Commons: "This prime minister once spoke of compassion and dignity for migrants, and for defending free movement."Now he talks of 'islands of strangers' and 'taking back control'. Somebody here has to call this out."It seems the only principle he consistently defends is whichever he last heard in a focus group. So I ask him, is there any belief he holds which survives a week in Downing Street?"Sir Keir replied: "Yes, the belief that she talks rubbish.""I want to lead a country where we pull together and walk into the future as neighbours and as communities, not as strangers, and the loss of control of migration by the last government put all of that at risk, and that's why we're fixing the system based on principles of control, selection and fairness," he added. 'Struck a nerve' After Prime Minister's Questions, Saville Roberts said Sir Keir's "outburst" showed "my question struck a nerve". "The expressions on the faces of many Labour MPs told their own story – plenty of them know I was right," she said."If his convictions change with the political weather, it's no surprise that support for Labour in Wales, as across Britain, is falling through the floor."On Tuesday, Eluned Morgan warned she was "extremely concerned about our ability to recruit to the care sector" and "people need to recognise that there is a direct knock-on effect on hospital waits and how long people have to wait in emergency departments because of the fragility of the care sector".
