About 20 years ago, I worked for what's now called the Border and Immigration Agency. Even back then (or especially back then, as this is when this business was in primary fermentation), it was a back-and-forth between the courts and Tony Blair's government. We were told to refuse most asylum applications, in the knowledge half of them would be overturned on appeal, and the other half would disappear. Attempted new policies, like withdrawing benefits from refused asylum seekers, had millions upon millions of pounds worth of legal aid judicial reviews thrown in the way. It was a great gravy train for lawyers. Probably still is.
Right now, it's even more of a gravy train for the hospitality industry in the UK, as the government is a huge customer. I mean, 4-star and 5-star hotels are booked up all year round with asylum seekers. I think the government is far from serious with the Rwanda stunt. They're just playing up to populist expectations. If they were serious they could just film the interior of these country hotels and Holiday Inns, and make it widely known through sympathetic press channels. But they aren't doing that. They know full well that nobody is actually going to Rwanda. They will use this to prop up some political support. I think they're very politically savvy, and they have learned that the working class in this country is actually capitalist, i.e. that the electricians and other skilled trades may call themselves Labour, but they're actually interested in running around making money and having fun. I don't think the Labour party understands that at all. Conversely, working class people aren't politically savvy in the slightest. They don't understand a thing about political or administrative law. They don't know how our theoretical unwritten constitution and its conventions. They didn't understand the implications of the EU. Neither do they even grasp the basics of the obstacles in the way of putting populist policies such as the Rwanda thing into practice. In reality, people are very good at whatever they do, but then when it comes to reality, they buy hamburgers (which cost a lot more, and are less tasty, than what you can cook at home). It's not a really intellectually savvy nation. People just want the good times to stay, and they vaguely appreciate now that they're disappearing.
Very, very smart government we've got right now, which understands all these things.
. That's the power of the Tory press. Sew fear, uncertainty and doubt into the collective consciousness.
