Voting down the Dubs amendment

JVL Introduction

A short, sharp intervention by David Rosenberg on the shameful Tory tearing up of the Dubs Amendment which sought to guarantee the right of unaccompanied child refugees to be reunited with family living in the UK

This article was originally published by Davesrebellion on Fri 10 Jan 2020. Read the original here.

Vindictiveness and faux outrage

Here are some names: James Cleverly, Michael Gove, Jeremy Hunt, Rishi Sunak, Iain Duncan Smith… they have all been almost wetting themselves with excitement at the prospect of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) reporting soon with a verdict that the Labour Party is “institutionally racist” (the EHRC having been egged on by the gaggle of very right wing Tories and Islamophobes that hypocritically call themselves the “Campaign Against Antisemitism” and the fanatically anti-Corbyn Jewish Labour Movement).

If anyone is in any doubt about which party has called out and campaigned most strongly against institutional racism over many, many years, that is the Labour Party.

The vote that took place in Parliament this week was a fine illustration of what the Tories really believe, and just how selective is their faux-outrage about “Labour Party racism”.

Those names above were among the 348 (almost all Tories plus the occasional DUP member) who voted down the Dubs Amendment to the Brexit Withdrawal Bill which sought to guarantee the right of unaccompanied child refugees to be reunited with family living in the UK. The amendment was tabled by Jeremy Corbyn in absolute accordance with his lifelong support for refugee rights and total opposition to racism.

One of Boris Johnson’s very first acts as Prime Minister was to seek to remove this commitment that even the heartless director of the Hostile Environment policy, Theresa May, had accepted under duress.

But now with their majority secure – a result partly achieved through false Tory propaganda, shamefully echoed daily by mainstream news outlets, that identified the Tories as supposed defenders of Jews – they can revert back to the most blatant reactionary attitudes towards vulnerable minorities.

This was the Tories showing their absolute contempt for the Czechoslovakian-born Jewish parliamentarian Lord Dubs, who has directly related his campaigning on this issue to the sanctuary he found as a 6-year-old child refugee through the Kindertransport.

The vote this week was as clear a display of the petty, vindictive, inhumane, anti-refugee racism of the Tory party as you will find – as well as their hypocrisy. Sickening and disgusting.

 

Comments (10)

  • Mary Davies says:

    Shame on this cruel government.

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  • Margaret Spector says:

    The What can we do to reverse this. It is inhumane but well in keeping with Tory policies of abandoning those in need of help. “Me, Myself and I” is their motto and those who will be needing help and gave him power will have their comeuppance. Unfortunately so will others

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  • christina Evans says:

    Many years ago when my daughter was five years old, she was been bullied at school. I went into school and spoke to my daughters teacher about it . The instigator of the bullying was listening in the classroom to the conversation. The bully came up and put her arm around my daughter and said ” I will take care of her ” she smiled. ” Isnt that nice ? ” said the teacher and then went on to thank the bully. My daughter looked downcast and fearful, I didn’t say anything . I would go up to school and watch my daughter in the playground, it deterred the bully . My point is this is more or less the same thing, the tories don’t worry about anti racism or anti Semitism etc . If anyone points the finger at them, they turn it round . saying labour are awash with bullying and that the tories are the party who fight against anti Semitism ,racism etc. The tories are not on the side of the ones who are suffering, they say blatant no to helping children who need our help. I wonder what the JLM and the other ones who say they can rest easy knowing labour lost , knowing that innocent children and many people will suffer because the tories won with a huge majority, giving the government carte blanche now to do whatever they want. How exactly can this be resolved ? What will happen when the people who voted in the tories realised all their problems will not be solved, it will be worse than ever, the new working class tory voters will either turn on the government, saying they have been tricked, or worse they will still blame the socialist labour party. When will these new working class tory voters realise they have been well and truly played.

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  • JanP says:

    Completely agree. And goes against the UN convention on the rights of the Child – which the British government ratified.

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  • Carmen Malaree says:

    A pity few people in the UK will be aware of this inhumane decision taken by the Commons. The press and television channels have not highlighted this and the enthusiasm for things to get better has died down. Unfortunately the witch hunt set up by the right and the media against Jeremy Corbyn has demoralised his supporters, my family among them, so it is important to hear voices that denounce the present
    government policies. Thanks for the article.

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  • Naomi Wayne says:

    Good piece David – and heartbreaking. How sad Alf Dubs must be feeling too.

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  • dave says:

    I have a lot fo time for Alf Dubs, whom I had a nice chat with recently. But I was disappointed he was one of the gang that marched with Smeeth, Streeting, Berger and co to railroad Marc Wadsworth out of the party.

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  • Emma Gaiger says:

    Thankyou for writing this peice I agree the tories true colours are on display yet again in this cowardly vindictive and inhumane display of their true natures.It is such an inhumane act to vote down the Dubs amendment by the majority of tories. Lord Dubs and Corbyn’s actions are humane.Long may they continue to fight to uphold peoples human rights.I for one will support them.

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  • Mark Francis says:

    A timely reminder of who the nasty party really is.

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  • Anne Tanner says:

    Dreadful !!!! Sums up this foul Tory government!

    This Tory government is driving us back to the 19th century!!

    I fear for my grandchildren😢

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