Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood claims that racial prejudice is on the rise in Britain, as she recalls the abuse she and her family have been subject to in recent months. The senior Cabinet Minister said that the nation is experiencing a deterioration in community relations between different ethnic groups, expressing her view that the UK has become more racially intolerant.
Speaking to The Times, she said: “Being called a ‘f****** P***’ is not a new thing for me, but there’s a lot more of it around in recent times than there has been over the course of the rest of my life. And more of my own family have been racially abused in that way recently. My family members, my immediate family members, my extended family members, my parents, my siblings, my cousins.
Shabana Mahmood announced her plans to overhaul the immigration system last week (Image: Getty)
“There are examples across our family and also the people I represent, of more people telling me about being sworn at, told to f*** off home.”
The Home Secretary highlighted that these horrific incidents may continue to escalate if Britain’s immigration concerns are not addressed.
She continued: “That’s becoming a bit too common these days again. ‘F****** P***’, ‘f****** Muslim’, headscarf-wearing Muslim women in particular attract ‘f****** Muslim’ on a regular basis.
“The position on race relations, I feel, if you’re an ethnic minority in Britain, you can say with confidence unfortunately, has deteriorated.”
Ms Mahmood added that she was left feeling “frustrated” after hearing comments telling her to “get in her lane” after speaking out against the soaring immigration figures. She said she was often told “how dare you as a woman of your background think or say other things”.
The Home Secretary’s comments follow her asylum announcement plans to reform the immigration system.
The proposed changes include successful asylum applicants only being granted “temporary” leave to remain in the UK and this will be reviewed every two and a half years.
Previously, refugees were allowed to stay for five years and then they could apply for indefinite leave to remain.
Ms Mahmood will also bring forward a bill to change how article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), the right to family life, is applied in migration court cases.
Migrants may also face removal as soon as their home countries are deemed safe, and housing and weekly allowances would also no longer be guaranteed while in Britain.
