Enver Solomon, the outgoing chief executive of the Refugee Council, has issued a stark warning about the unprecedented levels of hostility and toxicity now surrounding the UK's asylum and migration debate. Reflecting on his five-year tenure, which began in 2020, Solomon describes a landscape transformed by political rhetoric and a malfunctioning system.
A Landscape of Legislative Hyperactivity and Hostility
Solomon notes that few areas of government policy have seen such intense legislative activity. Four separate bills have become law since 2020, with a fifth expected imminently as the Home Office works to enact reforms proposed by Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood in November 2025.
The stated intent of these laws has been consistent: to deter asylum shopping, disrupt smuggling gangs, increase removals, and regain border control. However, Solomon observes that the political tone, briefly softened when Labour instructed officials to replace "illegal arrivals" with "irregular", quickly reverted. Mahmood herself later claimed illegal migration was "tearing the country apart", while Opposition Leader Kemi Badenoch linked asylum seekers to women feeling unsafe in parks.
The Human Cost of a 'Dysfunctional' System
This narrative shift, Solomon argues, has emboldened the far right and led to direct action. He recounts incidents he never anticipated witnessing: a hotel housing asylum seekers set on fire, refugees assaulted in the street, and charity staff fearing for their safety.
The toxicity is compounded by a system in chronic disarray. A National Audit Office analysis found over half of asylum applicants from almost three years ago are still awaiting a decision. Solomon cites basic failures: letters sent to wrong addresses, interpreters unable to translate due to incorrect language assignments, and traumatised children facing inappropriate accommodation due to cursory age assessments.
"The words that ring in my head each time I hear of these failures remind me of the Windrush inquiry’s conclusion," he writes, "that the Home Office has lost sight of the faces behind the cases."
A Critical Choice for the Nation's Identity
Despite the government's focus, public confidence has plummeted. Voters overwhelmingly lack faith in the state's ability to control borders, and scepticism grows with each new announcement. Solomon contends that five years of "stopping the boats" rhetoric has only fuelled division and disbelief.
He presents the governing Labour party with a stark choice: continue an approach that tacitly endorses a hostile narrative, or confidently articulate an alternative vision based on integration, shared humanity, and global solutions to a global challenge.
"It is a simple yet stark choice," Solomon concludes. "Carry on with an approach... that in essence is stating that 'Nigel Farage is right but don’t vote for him', or confidently articulate an alternative worldview." He calls for political leaders to end the harmful "othering" of migrants and for the public to reaffirm values of fairness, decency, and compassion.
