''When you are in a hole, stop digging.''

''When you are in a hole, stop digging.'' This quote was attributed to the Labour Party politician, Denis Healy, in 1988; he meant that when you got yourself into a hole of political difficulties it is best to stop digging as the first step to solve your problems.

The government has got itself into a deep hole over the Rwanda immigration policy which is a complete failure at the moment and will continue to be. The Rwandan scheme of deporting so called "illegal" immigrants and asylum seekers, or boat people, to Rwanda, is already a failure. The Rwandan government will, at the most,  allow 500 unfortunate immigrants to be accommodated in hotels, but there are around 28,000  boat people arriving every year, so even if there is a way found to legally deport the boat people then thousands will remain to be detained in the UK. 

Thousands of boat people have risked their lives to arrive on the UK shores so being deported to Rwanda will not act as a deterrent to many.  Likewise, the death penalty never stopped murders and it was useless as a deterrent.

It would be best to find an alternative policy  to deporting boat people and stop this inhumane stupidity.

UK immigration policy is a continuing disaster

 Today the UK supreme court has ruled that the governments policy to send so-called "illegal asylum seeking immigrants" to Rwanda is unlawful. There now needs to be a reappraisal of immigration policy.

It was always debatable whether refugees  who enter the country by unofficial means, such as smuggling by people traffickers,  are  in fact entering illegally. Under international law refugees fleeing wars, torture and prejudice do not have to cross borders "legally" to claim asylum.

The best solution to the problem of the boat people is to treat these unfortunate refugees with some respect and compassion. So far the government has failed. In their efforts to appease public opinion they have introduced measures to deliberately slow down the procedures for granting asylum to refugees, and this policy has resulted in huge backlogs to clear applications.  Because, the government has made it extremely difficult for genuine refugees  to gain access to the UK, asylum seekers are paying people smugglers to ferry them across the English channel. The government  has dreamt up the incompetent scheme of sending asylum seekers to Rwanda, to act supposedly as a deterrent. Government policy is now both egregious and  unlawful.

Immigration and asylum policy could be improved enormously. I could dream up a better policy and system, which would help solve the crisis.

Many of the refugees are from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq, we bombed them so they are entitled to come to the UK forthwith and without excessive bureaucracy, provided they are not on a terrorist or dangerous criminal watch list. Likewise for refugees from Ukraine, Sudan and Hong Kong. The backlog could be reduced very quickly. Albanian citizens who arrive illegally should be sent back just like Thai and Malaysian citizens etc. would be.

It should be made easier and cheaper for workers to obtain work visas for the UK. They would then be less inclined to use subterfuge and then work in the Grey markets as wage slave agency workers.

Of course, there will be undeserving cases but their applications would be treated as exceptions, their applications could be fast tracked and undeserving or dishonest applicants could then be removed or jailed if necessary..

France has offered to Britain the opportunity to cater for applications for asylum seekers in processing centers on French territory, but they won't do this whilst the current farrago is not resolved. Let's take up their offer and resolve the problems legally and humanely.

It is time for all politicians to stop appealing to the lowest common denominator of public opinion, on dealing with immigration. The public should be reminded of our duty to accommodate  refugees with compassion and lawfulness. There needs to be a policy agreed between all the major parties.

If we treat everyone according to their human rights and dignity, then there will be no need to implement egregious policies and leave the ECHR. Gut instinct politics should have no support in a humane society.

Gaza crisis

 The violence and hatred between Israel and Palestine needs to stop immediately. There needs to be rapprochement and the "tit for tat" revenge needs to end. It does not matter who is individually to blame for the war. The Jewish and Palestinian victims are simply the victims of war. 

I am not a religious person but there is one religious maxim which is pertinent and that is "turn the other cheek".

It is time for both sides to introduce a change of thought and moral perspective, otherwise this conflict could go on forever. The international community must work together  with the warring parties to arrange a two states solution where both Israeli and Palestinian citizens can live in peace and without  the endless cycle of  revenge.

Stirring up prejudice

 A couple of days ago I was walking towards our local high street when I heard a white woman direct a foul mouthed invective towards two women, nearby, who were wearing hijabs. "Go home" she shouted. "Fuck off back to where you came from". The two ladies looked shocked by her obscene and violent outburst. I was shocked too, and it took me a couple of seconds to finally understand what she was saying. She disappeared quickly before I could challenge her. The two victims were too far away for me to  approach them to tell them that not everyone indulges in this form of hate speech, and anyway they may not have appreciated me approaching them for fear of being subjected to further abuse. Under these circumstances it is difficult to know what to do for the best.

The woman shouting the obscenities could not have known where her victims were born; they could have been as British as she was. The white woman just assumed that  they were foreigners because they were wearing hijabs and had slightly darker skin than her. The white woman doing the shouting just displayed her ignorance and vile prejudice, she was committing a hate crime and probably would have been arrested had the police been around.

I have never witnessed this sort of abuse before in our local community. I cannot prove it but I suspect that recent speeches by our politicians criticising multi-culturalism and so called "illegal migrants" is stirring up not just unhinged characters, but also more sane, but prejudiced, people into orally attacking citizens who they assume to be immigrants. Worse, some people are being subjected to "racist" and bigoted violence. 

Even if there is no causal connexion between the  outpouring of politicians and racist hate speech and violence on the streets, then political leaders have a duty to appeal to the population to restrain themselves. Without this we could be on a slippery and dangerous slope. 

Women's World Cup Football Madness

 We have all seen and read about the controversy related to the Rubiales kiss and his crotch-grabbing triumphalism. It is my opinion that his behaviour was more crass than criminal. He should resign even if he  and his mother feel that he did nothing wrong: and before the public clamour, for something to be done about his behaviour, leads to his dismissal. 

In my opinion the football authorities are more to blame than Rubiales, because Rubiales should not have been on the stage in the first place and neither should any other of the dignitaries from the winning or losing states. It would have been sufficient for prominent women of both the hosting states , Australia and New Zealand,  to be handing out the cup and the medals: this would have lead to a more dignified occasion.

Football has lost its way because it is being run by men who are unable to resist the temptation of commercialism, jingoistic triumphalism and egoistic exhibitionism.

Footballers have been encouraged to dance around platforms when they win and embrace the blatant commercialism and the public relations jamboree. There must always be a winner, so much so that football has to have a penalty shoot-out when there is a draw. This does not select the best team of the tournament. Knock out competitions rarely do. There must be a winner demanded by commercial interests and the  TV and social media schedules. A draw is unacceptable for them.

The pressure to win, at all costs, has lead to teams cheating and fouling and generally bringing the game into disrepute.

The growth of the women's game gives women the opportunity to make the sport better. However, I fear that the female version will be dragged down to the level of the men's game. It is time for women to take charge and prevent this from happening just for the love of sport.

There are lots of things wrong with our political system

 There have been some disturbing reports with our political system reported recently.

One MP has been using foul language about asylum seekers and immigrants, he was was quoted as saying that asylum seekers should "f*** off back to France" if they do not like being accommodated on a barge. I would never vote for any prospective MP if they use such language, no matter what party they stand for or opinion being cast. I expect every MP to be more respectful and intelligent in their choice of language when making public statements.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/lee-anderson-asylum-seekers-bibby-barge-b2389327.html

There have been disturbing reports that hackers have stolen the names and addresses of every voter in the UK from the electoral commission. This is egregious. How could this have happened? It seems that none of our data is safe and secure in the  UK whether they are in the hands of government bodies or corporations? How can we now trust future plans to have electronic voting if the electoral systems are not safe from hackers and bad actors? Anyone who holds our data should redouble their efforts to improve to ensure that any information held is secure.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/hack-cyber-attack-uk-voters-b2389523.html#comments-area

The Russia and Ukraine war

 The war between Russia and Ukraine is an unjustified scourge. So many innocent civilians and conscripted soldiers have died or have been wounded.  There are thousands of people who have lost their homes or have become refugees. The cost is running into billions of dollars.It is all for nothing and no side will ultimately benefit. There was a Minsk 2 agreement which, if implemented ,would have formed the basis of a lasting peace. There could have been a rapprochement based on joint sovereignty of the Donbass and the Crimea. But, no, both sides failed to implement the agreement by preferring war to achieve their aims rather than by using diplomacy. 

There is an increasing stalemate on the battlefront and both sides are using cluster bombs which many states, including the UK, regard as unacceptable if not a war crime. A war of attrition could go on for years. 

In any war there is a temptation to destroy infrastructure as both an offensive and defensive tactic, this tactic is exacerbating the problems of Ukraine and its people.

It is possible that Ukraine will recover the Donbass but I doubt that the Crimea will ever be recaptured. If there is a peace agreement to be negotiated ,when one side starts losing, there will have to be provision for the human rights of ethnic minorities in both Ukraine and the Crimea. Sanctions should be maintained against Russia if they do not agree to this, and, likewise, Ukraine should not be allowed to join NATO or the EU if they do not agree. Any negotiated settlement must be implemented by both sides.

Eventually, there will have to be a peace agreement so why not stop the war, and start negotiating now? What is so wrong with the human race that we cannot solve international problems by diplomacy rather than by war.  We have the madness of nuclear weapons hanging over our heads, and one day a psychopathic dictator might decide to use them if he starts  losing a war. The climate crisis could erase the human race from the planet; we should all pool our efforts into fighting man-made global warming rather than pursuing useless and dangerous wars.