Braverman says multiculturalism has ‘failed’ in Europe during migration speech

The Home Secretary says multiculturalism in Europe has ‘failed’ as she calls for asylum reform to try and preserve national identities.

Suella Braverman has hosted a keynote speech in Washington today in order to campaign for changes to global asylum rules.

Mr Braverman also said it is ‘dangerous’ to dismiss people who express concerns about immigration numbers as ‘idiots or bigots’.

She says the current framework, introduced after World War II, is ‘outdated’ and today deals with many millions more people than it did when it was put in place 70 years ago.

She set out four main arguments against illegal migration during her speech, one of which was the civic argument, saying: ‘Uncontrolled immigration, inadequate integration and a misguided dogma of multiculturalism have proven a toxic combination for Europe over the last few decades.’

She said multiculturalism ‘has failed because it allowed people to come to our society and live parallel lives in it’, and even ‘pursue lives aimed at undermining the stability and threatening the security of our society’.

She referenced a speech by former German chancellor Angela Merkel in 2010 in which she said multiculturalism had failed, saying she is ‘not sure that very much has changed since’.

Migration to the UK and Europe in the last 25 years ‘has been too much, too quick, with too little thought given to integration and the impact on social cohesion,’ she said.

She’s calling for major reform (Picture: PA)

She delivered her speech this afternoon (Picture: Sky News)

Ms Braverman added: ‘If cultural change is too rapid and too big, then what was already there is diluted. Eventually it will disappear.

‘I believe that the nation state is one of humanity’s great civilising forces. It creates a shared identity and a shared purpose, and that does not need to have a racial component.

‘Typically it binds people of different racial background together. Far from being an ugly emotion, patriotism stirs people to heroism and kindness.

‘In order for nationality to be sustainable economically, culturally, and in terms of public support, it needs to encompass everyone.

‘That in turn means the country cannot grow exponentially and still maintain the harmony for everyone to feel that we are all in this together.

‘If immigration is uncontrolled, it makes it harder for society to adapt and accommodate new cultures and customs.

‘If people are not able to settle in our countries and start to think of themselves as British, American, French, or German, then something is going badly wrong.’

Ms Braverman also hit back at critics during the speech, arguing that concerns over immigration does not make one an ‘idiot’ or a ‘bigot’.

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In the address, she said the ‘cynical’ reason that countries had together failed to reform the decades-old global asylum system was a ‘fear of being branded a racist or illiberal’.

She added: ‘Any attempt to reform the Refugee Convention will see you smeared as anti-refugee.

‘Similar epithets are hurled at anyone who suggests reform of the ECHR (European Convention on Human Rights) or its court in Strasbourg.

‘I reject the notion that a country cannot be expected to respect human rights if it is not signed up to an international human rights organisation.

‘As if the UK doesn’t have a proud history of human rights dating back to Magna Carta, and the ECHR is all that is holding us back from becoming Russia.’

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