Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Bill [HL]

My Lords, after the very detailed scrutiny of a particular clause by the noble and learned Lord, Lord Lloyd, I wish to dwell a little on some of the fundamental principles that will pertain to any debate around such issues as borders, citizenship and immigration. After all, what is a border? Is it a barrier or is it a meeting place? I imagine that most of us want to believe that a border can be a meeting place. Therefore, I imagine that most of us would rather not be debating a Bill which is predicated on a pathology of suspicion and a predetermination towards exclusion rather than welcome. I guess that most of us would rather be discussing a Bill driven by a spirit of hospitality rather than hostility towards those who wish to settle in this country, equipped, as many of them are, with very necessary aptitudes, energy and skills such as the Prime Minister has indicated will be absolutely vital if this country is to be able to respond to an upturn in the economy when it comes. But this is the Bill we have and we need to examine some of the underlying principles that seem to inform it. Of course, as we have heard, there are aspects of this Bill which I am sure all sides of the House will wish to endorse, not least Clause 41 regarding descent through the female line, and especially Clauses 32 and 51 relating to the welfare of children. However, as the noble Lord, Lord Avebury, pointed out, the Bill is distinguished as much by what it does not address as by what it does. It does not take the opportunity to address the continued detention of children and families or to rectify the scandal of families rendered destitute with children taken into care under Section 9 of the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants, etc.) Act 2004. It has to be said that ““welcome”” is a difficult word to associate with the Bill, which aims to strengthen our borders as barriers, thereby weakening them as meeting places. Of course, the key word is ““security””. We can secure our borders in the same way as we can secure our houses against unwelcome intruders. However, it is ironic that every measure we take to secure ourselves simply testifies to our increasing sense of insecurity. That, in its turn, leaves us feeling less at ease with friend and stranger alike. Earned citizenship is an interesting idea and has set me thinking about my own citizenship of this country. For all that the noble and learned Lord, Lord Goldsmith, has helped us to understand the richness of citizenship, there is a sense that all I had to do to earn my citizenship was to take the trouble to be born; in other words, it is mine by grace rather than merit. Therefore, I simply pose the question whether it is legitimate for me to ask others to earn what is mine by accident of birth but, above all, I believe, by the grace of God. If we are to conjure with such notions, we would be unwise to allow the Bill to go very much further before we are clear about what is meant by ““being of good character””. I am grateful to the Minister for giving further explanation of what is intended by that phrase. We also need to understand a little more about what is intended by the phrase ““prescribed activities”” in Clause 39, which is, apparently, awaiting definition in subsequent regulations. Will, for example, active involvement in political activities qualify? Will involvement in faith-based activities qualify? Will trade union activities qualify? We know that only voluntary activities will qualify, and as the noble Baroness, Lady Hanham, indicated, if such activities are being undertaken as a pre-condition for gaining citizenship, can they be genuinely described as voluntary? How much surveillance will be involved in monitoring such activities? Who will be ticking the boxes to make sure that every criterion has been met? This could be a brilliant idea for furthering and enhancing participation in local or community life; or it could be a cynical abuse of the voluntary sector, with an emphasis placed on passing a test rather than making a difference. The trouble is that as the Bill stands, we do not know which it is. Such a key question should be dealt with in primary legislation rather than in subsequent regulations. Furthermore, and a little more subtly, am I alone in detecting a culture of conformity, a conformism that is in conflict with a culture of cosmopolitanism, which I believe we should be seeking to encourage rather than deter? Note that I use the word ““cosmopolitanism”” rather than ““multiculturalism””; the latter can tend towards a separation of different cultural communities one from another, while cosmopolitanism is about mutual enrichment consequent on citizens of different backgrounds interacting with one another as part of the ebb and flow of human life. To achieve that, we do not need to encourage new arrivals to be clones of the majority population. They need to be able to engage constructively and creatively with their fellow citizens. The proposed regulations, and the Bill itself, may be directed to that end, but until we see the regulations, we cannot be sure. By no means least, the Bill offers no protection for large numbers of people currently settled in the UK, some of whom may have lived here for most or even all of their lives. Because the possibility of their becoming permanent residents has been, as we have heard, left for future secondary legislation, they are left in no man’s land when it comes to entitlement to services. More importantly, they continue to live beneath the cloud of uncertainty which is of no benefit to them and reflects little credit on us. I know a little about no man’s land. Several years ago, I crossed over from Israel into Egyptian Sinai. Between the two border controls, we were told to disembark from our coaches and stand for some hours under the baking midday sun while officials haggled over whether to let us in or send us back. This was just a taste of no man’s land, when I grasped a little of what it means to be stripped of one’s identity, devalued and dehumanised. This border was a barrier, when I was on a mission to meet those whose initial instinct was to be hostile. We can do better than that, but the Bill as it stands will not help us so to do. Further questions could be asked about exactly what probationary citizenship amounts to or why it is necessary, as the noble Lord, Lord Avebury, has said. Fees of approximately £700 hardly send out a positive signal to those whose gifts, talents, experience and expertise we will continue to need, even during the period of economic downturn. If the Minister can convince us that these measures are absolutely necessary—I believe that in the present state of our troubled world he may well be able so to do—let us take no pleasure in supporting them. Perhaps they do strengthen our borders, but at great cost to our sense of a shared humanity with those who live alongside us in the global village but against whom we erect barriers which make it all the more difficult for us to meet them and so be mutually enriched. Recently, the Prime Minister wrote: "““This is the modern definition of social justice: not just social protection but real opportunity for everyone to make the most of their potential in a Britain where what counts is not where you come from but what you aspire to become””." Fine words; and we all look forward to their being given legislative effect as the Bill enters Committee stage.