Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Braverman’s rhetoric is fuelling racism, ‘normalising’ the politics of Nigel Farage, says former adviser

Nimco Ali, who became an aide on dealing with violence against women by former home secretary Priti Patel in 2020, recently resigned live on-air and warned that PM Rishi Sunak will not win next election with Braverman as his home secretary.

Braverman’s rhetoric is fuelling racism, ‘normalising’ the politics of Nigel Farage, says former adviser

British home secretary Suella Braverman's "crazy rhetoric" on the issue of immigration is fuelling racism and "normalising" the politics of Nigel Farage, a senior home office aide, who is on her way out, has alleged.

According to a report by The Independent, Nimco Ali, a campaigner against female genital mutilation who had moved to the UK from the African state of Somalia as a child refuge, became an adviser on dealing with violence against women by former home secretary Priti Patel two years ago.


Ali resigned from her role live on-air last week, saying she is on a "completely different planet" from Braverman, who became the home secretary for the second time after Rishi Sunak became the prime minister in October, succeeding Liz Truss, under whom Braverman had served her first stint.

The departing aide has warned that Sunak is "not going to win [the next general election] with Suella as his home secretary".

“She’s basically feeding into this Nigel Farage stuff ... and when you start to normalise these things it’s really hard to put it back in its box,” Ali was quoted as saying by The Sunday Times.

“When you have your home secretary speaking the way she is speaking and being cheered, that is problematic, especially when you’re the first man of colour to be prime minister.”

“I don’t know why your ambition is to put people on a flight to Rwanda and get rid of human rights,” Ali said of Braverman.

“You are a woman of colour. I can understand when white able-bodied men say it, but you? Even talking about it now makes me anxious.”

Ali said she saw clear links between such “crazy rhetoric” and the sort of racist abuse she personally experienced during a couple of incidents in London, during the Euro 2020 tournament.

After having “never really experienced racism” overtly during her decade-long living in London, Ali faced alleged racist slurs during an argument that took place at a bar while watching an England match. She experienced a similar tirade just weeks later.

“I thought, what is actually going on? Why are people thinking it’s okay to be so openly racist?”

When the paper asked Ali whether she believed Braverman’s language was helping to fuel such incidents, she said, “100 per cent. It’s legitimising it. When somebody like her says it, you think, you’re still talking about people of your own heritage to a certain extent but you’re also normalising the Nigel Farages.”

Meanwhile, a source close to Braverman told the Times, “It’s the home secretary’s duty to be honest with the British people about the scale of the crisis we’re facing on the south coast with the small boats crisis. She makes no apologies for that.”

More For You

Southport stabbings: Terrorism watchdog rejects definition change

FILE PHOTO: Riot police hold back protesters near a burning police vehicle in Southport, England (Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Southport stabbings: Terrorism watchdog rejects definition change

TERRORISM watchdog has rejected calls to redefine terrorism following last summer's tragic Southport murders, while recommending a new offence to tackle those intent on mass killings without clear ideological motives.

Jonathan Hall KC, the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, published his highly anticipated report on Thursday (13), concluding that the existing definition of terrorism should remain unchanged despite growing concerns about violent attackers with unclear motives.

Keep ReadingShow less
Commonwealth wreath-laying ceremony held in London

A military piper, choir, and the Sikh soldiers of the British Army took part in the ceremony.

Commonwealth wreath-laying ceremony held in London

A WREATH-LAYING ceremony was held at the Memorial Gates on Constitution Hill in London on 10 March to honour Commonwealth servicemen and women who fought in the First and Second World Wars.

Lord Boateng, chairman of the Memorial Gates Council, led the event, highlighting the importance of remembering those who served.

Keep ReadingShow less
Student visas

The ongoing negotiations focus specifically on business mobility, addressing only the relevant business visas

iStock

Student visas excluded from UK-India FTA talks, says government

THE government last week clarified that only temporary business mobility visas are part of the India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations.

Other types of visas, such as student visas, will not be included in the trade deal, it was revealed during a debate in the House of Lords.

Keep ReadingShow less
India Detains Crypto Administrator Wanted by US for Laundering

Aleksej Besciokov, was charged with money laundering and accused of violating sanctions and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, according to the US Justice Department. (Photo: US Secret Service)

India arrests crypto administrator wanted by US for money laundering

INDIAN authorities have arrested a cryptocurrency exchange administrator at the request of the United States on charges of money laundering conspiracy and sanctions violations, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said on Wednesday.

The arrest follows a joint operation by the United States, Germany, and Finland, which dismantled the online infrastructure of Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer-Getty

Starmer said that the change would free up funds for doctors, nurses, and frontline services while reducing red tape to accelerate improvements in the health system. (Photo: Getty Images)

Starmer scraps NHS England, brings health service under ministerial control

PRIME MINISTER Keir Starmer has abolished NHS England, bringing the health service under direct ministerial control.

The decision reverses a key reform introduced by former health secretary Andrew Lansley during the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition, The Guardian reported.

Keep ReadingShow less