At the end of 2022 Waltham Forest Labour are looking towards the next year and what we want our borough to be in the future. With that in mind, at the final Full Council meeting of the year Waltham Forest Labour proposed a motion about becoming a Borough of Sanctuary. As we have mentioned in previous weeks, our Leader, Grace Williams has been engaged in vital meetings with the Home Office regarding safeguarding concerns in a hotel housing asylum seekers in our borough. Whilst this is not the reason we proposed the motion, we felt it timely to stand firm and announce our unwavering support for all migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in our borough.
The motion commits us as a council to a number of things. We will continue to welcome and support all people seeking sanctuary in the borough and we will always challenge anti-migrant sentiment. In my speech last night our Leader called out the Home Secretary, Suella Braverman for her despicable claim that it is her ‘obsession’ and ‘dream’ to see flights taking asylum seekers to Rwanda. Her speech also noted the rise in hate crime in our borough in the past few years and the uncertainty facing migrants in the aftermath of Brexit. All residents are welcome and celebrated in Waltham Forest and anyone who has any issues in this area can get in touch with the council and we will do our best to help.
We also pledged to find more opportunities across the Council to celebrate our migrant communities, tell their stories, and promote their voices. This means we will work with local community, health, and education partners, including those with lived experience, to shape Waltham Forest’s borough of sanctuary ambition.
We had an excellent team speaking for the motion, with a maiden speech from Cllr Miriam Mirwitch who spoke movingly of the work our council has already done to help children and families fleeing persecution and violence. Cllr Louise Mitchell set the record straight with some facts about our asylum process and the way that the government is supporting – or not supporting – those who come here fleeing violence. Cllr Shabana Dhedhi told Council about her experience of these issues as a ward councillor, and how the council had to step in where the Home Office had failed.
Our motion makes it very clear that we will join campaigns to end the Hostile Environment policy of the Home Office, calling for no Rwanda deportations and supporting those impacted by the Windrush scandal. In light of the concerns raised within the borough, we also called on the Home Office to guarantee the safety of all children under their care. Waltham Forest Council is of course stepping in and providing urgent care, but we believe it is the responsibility of the Home Office to ensure these children are safe.
We promised to join with civil society organisations to campaign for changes to Home office policies such as removing the ban on work for asylum seekers and demanding that housing contracts for asylum seekers will never put profit before people.