Immigration should be addressed in a way consistent with Labour values

Last week, Ed Miliband announced some proposals to tackle immigration, setting out what Labour’s plan on the issue would be if he becomes Prime Minister next year. As predicted, the proposals have come under sharp criticism, from some who say it doesn’t go far enough, and some who say that the controls proposed are far too strict and have to be relaxed.

Let’s face it, though. Labour does have a UKIP problem. It is no coincidence that UKIP’s support continues to increase as Labour stagnates in the polls. I completely understand why the leadership is acting as it is, in an attempt to address the concerns of UKIP voters. But, they are doing it in a way that is wrong, and does not address the issue at hand. The way they are addressing the issue is a fundamental failure to understand what is motivating many traditional Labour voters to become ‘Kippers.

To come to terms with UKIP’s effect on Labour, the Labour leadership needs to embrace some home truths. Yes, immigration as a whole is positive, and that should be communicated more loudly. But, in some areas, it is also true that immigration has driven down wages-and this is largely due to predatory employers. These employers deliberately discriminate systematically against domestic workers, as they can hire workers from Eastern Europe, on, or below, the minimum wage. It’s not good for domestic workers, and it’s certainly not good for the immigrants.

And yes, it’s also true that it was Thatcher who deregulated the labour market and allowed this to happen. It is also true, however, that the Labour Party had 13 years in power to try to regulate the market and stop these abuses, and it did not. Looking at Labour to UKIP switchers, two things are particularly striking. Number 1 is that they are overwhelmingly working class. Number 2 is that the vast majority also left school early.

These people look for jobs, but there aren’t any, since many employers prefer to employ immigrants above unskilled workers here, due to the mistaken perception that native Brits are not as “hardworking”, and they simply don’t have the qualifications to find a better job. Either this, or they get stuck in a dead-end job with no life prospects.

Make no mistake, this is abuse of the system. Before the Thatcher era, a system that works like ours does now would have been unprecedented.

I often hear the Labour Party leadership go on and on about how “immigrants drive down wages”, but this is not the correct way to address these issues. This is not tackling the issue in a left-wing way, or in a way that is consistent with Labour values.

What the Labour Party leadership should be talking about is cracking down on these labour market abuses. Let’s make it clear that we would go after these employers who exploit people. Let’s tackle the predatory employers and fake employment agencies that exploit both immigrants and domestic workers. This is entirely consistent with the social democratic, market interventionist approach taken by Miliband. This approach would resonate with these voters in a way that current rhetoric on immigration will not.

Either way, if the Labour Party fails to win the next election because 10-20% of Labour voters switched to UKIP, or if we do manage to become the Government, Labour figures will be scratching their heads and looking over their shoulder. Let’s not give UKIP the opportunity to do that, and win back these voters so that we can aim for a Labour victory next year.