Home Secretary Suella Braverman has taken advantage of her stellar appearance at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester to emerge as the alternative to the Tories’ hardline wing. Braverman has not hesitated to cry out against the “hurricane” of the arrival of irregular immigrants to the United Kingdom, a week after his controversial speech in Washington in which he openly proclaimed that “multiculturalism has failed” and that “uncontrolled immigration is a existential threat to the West.”
All the spotlights were pointed towards Braverman on the penultimate day of a tumultuous congress marked by the renewed internal struggles of the Tories and by the stumbles of Rishi Sunak, accused among his own coreligionists of “canceling the future” (due to the possible suspension of the high speed to Manchester).
Braverman took advantage of the hubbub to reaffirm his tough line on immigration, defend the deportations to Rwanda and threaten the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights, in what analysts already describe as a second Brexit.
The Secretary of the Interior defended herself against the criticism leveled against her for her speech in Washington (including those from Sunak himself) and assured that her anathema against multiculturalism – during her time at the far-right think tank American Enterprise Institute – was “misinterpreted” .
“Uncontrolled immigration, inadequate integration and the mistaken dogma of multiculturalism has been a toxic combination for Eurorpa in recent decades,” Braverman went on to say, qualifying his statements as he passed through Manchester: “We have a large multiethnic society and in many parts of the country integration has worked.
“But there are also many cities in the United Kingdom where some communities lead parallel lives,” he warned. “There are people who come from abroad and don’t learn the language. They don’t embrace British values ??or integrate into British life. These people have to be identified: we shouldn’t be afraid to do it and that’s my job.”
“Accusations of ‘racist, racist, racist’ will not work against Rishi Sunak and they will not work against me,” Braverman warned in a defiant tone before the conservative militants. “We will do everything necessary to stop the boats and prevent the abuses of those seeking asylum (…) Because the difference between the Conservatives and Labor is the difference between a strong border and the ‘no border’.”
Braverman personally attacked Labor leader Keir Starmer, whom he referred to as the Conservatives’ “secret weapon” in the upcoming election. “The British have no enthusiasm for a leader who believes in nothing,” he assured a standing audience that adopted the slogan: “We are going to raise our level of play.”
Braverman stressed his intention to “detain and deport those who arrive illegally in the United Kingdom”, after proclaiming that his country will not allow itself to be caught “in a web of rules designed for another era” (in a direct reference to the Convention on the status of the refugees of 1951).
The Home Secretary announced “the closure of hotels for asylum seekers” and warned that the massive wave of immigrants expected in the coming years “will be a hurricane compared to the breeze” that brought her own parents to the United Kingdom. .
Daughter of immigrants of Indian origin living in Kenya and Mauritius, promoted at the time as attorney general by Boris Johnson, Braverman has become at 43 years old the emerging star of the hard wing of the Conservative Party, with an “American-style” strategy. ” and supported by GB News (the local version of Fox News). Her most direct rivals are her Home Affairs predecessor Priti Patel and International Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch.
Badenoch, who already participated with notable support in the contest for Johnson’s succession, distanced himself from Braverman in advance, claiming that the United Kingdom “is the best country to be black.” The daughter of Nigerian immigrants, also 43, she criticized “the desperate narrative of ethnic minorities who think that British society is against you and that the best thing to do is to ask for reparations (for slavery).”
Priti Patel, 51 years old, also a descendant of immigrants of Indian origin living in Uganda, took advantage of the hodgepodge of the “Tories” to reclaim the prominence lost since she fell out of favor with her mentor Boris Johnson. Patel has made no secret of her ambitions to take the plunge in the upcoming Conservative leadership contest.
Even Liz Truss, the “premier” of the 45 days, received star treatment with the launch of the Conservative Group for Growth, supported by 60 “rebel” deputies who demand a tax cut from Sunak before the elections scheduled for 2024 .
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, a survivor of the Johnson era, has also projected his aura as a future candidate in Manchester. Penny Mordaunt, with her renewed popularity as parliamentary spokesperson for the Government and impeccable bearer of the sword during the Coronation of King Charles, has meanwhile risen again in the moderate wing.
Rishi Sunak will work hard to reclaim the role he lost at the close of the eventful Manchester conference on Wednesday. The “premier” – viewed “unfavorably” by 68% of voters after a year in Downing Street – threatens to “derail” definitively due to the possible announcement of the cancellation of the northern branch of the HS2 high-speed train.
His own coreligionists have harshly criticized his lack of vision as a leader in Manchester. The harshest of them has been Andrew Street, mayor of the West Midlands, who accused him on Monday of “canceling the future.” Since his arrival in the city, Sunak has encountered a clearly hostile climate, forced to respond evasively about his plans.
His predecessors Boris Johnson, Theresa May and David Cameron made common cause and called on Sunak to reconsider his decision on HS2. The “premier” convened a special cabinet in Manchester on Tuesday; Several ministers warned him against the serious impact the decision could have on voters, with the Labor Party 18 points ahead in the latest polls.
