In the US Presidential election campaign of 1992 a strategist in Bill Clinton’s team by the name of James Carville told campaign workers that there were three messages they should concentrate on and emphasise to the electorate, namely “it’s the economy, stupid”, “change vs more of the same” and “don’t forget healthcare”.
These three are certainly of great importance and should feature in any national election campaign, but I suggest that in the particular situation of the United Kingdom the most obvious and relevant to our country’s current problems should be “it’s immigration, stupid.”
I recently had a conversation with a staunch Conservative Party member I’ve known for some years during which he opined that Reform UK is a “one policy party” focusing on immigration when there are other more important issues such as the NHS, housing and education to address. Frankly, I was amazed that an intelligent person such as he could fail to understand that each of these issues, and many more, are directly and adversely affected by mass immigration. I pointed out, to his apparent surprise, that since 1997 NET migration to the UK is estimated at c7.5 million which represents about eight times the current population of our second city of Birmingham. However, the exact figure for net migration is something of a guestimate as even the Office for National Statistics seem unsure of it.
Mass migration has been a policy of successive British governments, whether declared or concealed, since Blair’s arrival in No. 10, and it must be blindingly obvious that an influx of the magnitude seen since, when combined with a normal birth rate over the intervening 27 years, has put huge pressure on almost all aspects of society including the NHS, housing, education, transport, welfare services, energy demand, natural resources and, of course, our cultural identity and social cohesion.
Even the defence of the realm is put in jeopardy when money which should be spent on the armed services is committed elsewhere due to the demands of unsustainable population growth. Britain’s armed forces have been starved of adequate investment over this same period as the demands of the NHS and the wider Welfare State have taken precedence to the extent that the Chief of the Defence Staff recently said that Britain would be unable to fight a conventional war in Europe for longer than six months with its current resources. I’m sure that the c£6 billion per annum current cost of hotel accommodation for illegal migrants could and should be better spent in beefing up our armed forces to defend the country against Russian aggression.
I wonder what James Carville would suggest are the issues we should concentrate on at the next general election. Certainly the economy, health, education, welfare, housing and defence would figure, but I would suggest that the British public must be made aware that the demands placed on all our public services by uncontrolled migration is unsustainable resulting not only in universally inadequate provision, but also in the largest domestic tax burden for over 70 years combined with ballooning government debt. Each of these are unsustainable and few in government, in Parliament and the wider public seem to understand that at the current rate of debt growth and its attendant interest burden is fast propelling our nation into a severe financial crisis where an IMF bailout could be required. Scare mongering some may say, but it’s happened before under a Labour government.
Mass immigration is the means by which successive British governments since 1997 have pathetically sought to grow the economy. The effect of this disastrously misguided policy has already led to an economic and social crisis and could yet lead to the impoverishment of us all.
It’s immigration, stupid.