Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

UK immigration laws from 1950 to 1981 were designed in part to "reduce the number of non-whites in UK: report

A leaked government paper has revealed that ‘racist immigration legislation' over 30 years, framed to reduce the UK's non-white population, led to the Windrush scandal, according to a media report.

UK immigration laws from 1950 to 1981 were designed in part to "reduce the number of non-whites in UK: report

A leaked government paper has revealed that 'racist immigration legislation' over 30 years, framed to reduce the UK’s non-white population, led to the Windrush scandal, according to a media report. 

The 52-page analysis, in a Home Office commissioned paper, by an unnamed historian, describes how “the British Empire depended on racist ideology in order to function”, and sets out how this affected the laws passed in the postwar period, The Guardian reported.


Every single piece of immigration or citizenship legislation was designed at least in part to reduce the number of people with black or brown skin who were permitted to live and work in the UK from 1950 to 1981, the report concluded.

According to the report, the Windrush scandal was caused by a failure to recognise that changes to British immigration law over the past 70 years had a more negative impact on black people than on other racial and ethnic groups.

Major immigration legislation in 1962, 1968 and 1971 was designed to reduce the proportion of people living in the UK who did not have white skin, it further said.

Diane Abbott MP, who attempted without success to have the paper released through the home affairs select committee, said the Home Office appeared to be “unwilling to acknowledge the racism that has disfigured British immigration policy for decades”.

The report was commissioned as part of a commitment to educating civil servants about the causes of the Windrush scandal, which saw thousands of people wrongly classified as illegal immigrants by the department.

After the scandal, ministers agreed to teach all 35,000 Home Office employees about Britain’s colonial history and the history of black Britons.

The report, titled “The Historical Roots of the Windrush Scandal”, focuses on the immigration legislation of the 20th century.

The unnamed Home Office historian writes: “The British Empire depended on racist ideology in order to function, which in turn produced legislation aimed at keeping racial and ethnic groups apart … From the beginning, concern about Commonwealth immigration was about skin colour.”

In the 1950s, British officials shared a “basic assumption that ‘coloured immigrants’, as they were referred to, were not good for British society,” the report stated.

Wendy Williams, the independent inspector advising the Home Office on what changes to make after Windrush, earlier said that she was “disappointed” the report had not been published a year after officials had signed off on it.

It has been made available to staff internally, but requests for it to be made public have been repeatedly rejected.

A freedom of information request about the document was refused.

According to The Guardian, immigration historians said it was peculiar to suppress a work of history that was funded by the taxpayer.

Simon Woolley, the former CEO of Operation Black Vote and chair of the No 10 race disparity unit, said the refusal to make the report public was “shameful”.

The report also cites a letter from the prime minister of the Federation of the West Indies, Sir Grantley Adams, to the Conservative prime minister Harold Macmillan. Sir Grantley protested that “Britain has begun to take steps which are no different in kind to the basis on which the system of apartheid in South Africa is based” by introducing the 1962 Commonwealth Immigrants Act.

Juanita Cox, a research fellow with the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, working on a Windrush scandal research project, told the newspaper: “If they admitted the Home Office’s legislation pre-1981 was institutionally racist, current legislation might also come under scrutiny and be found to be even worse. Britain’s immigration system is at complete odds with the proud image it portrays of welcoming immigrants.”

A Home Office spokesperson said the department would not name the historian who wrote the history.

More For You

Sri Lanka forms committee to address UK sanctions
Anura Kumara Dissanayake

Sri Lanka forms committee to address UK sanctions

THE Sri Lanka government on Wednesday (2) formed a committee to recommend measures regarding the UK's decision to impose sanctions on three former military commanders who led the campaign that crushed the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2009.

Health minister Nalinda Jayatissa told reporters that foreign minister Vijitha Herath, justice minister Harshana Nanayakkara and deputy minister of defence Aruna Jayasekara would comprise the committee that would consult experts for the purpose.

Keep ReadingShow less
Gujarat-blast-ANI

The blast caused the factory’s concrete roof to collapse, scattering debris and body parts across the area, officials confirmed. (Photo: ANI)

ANI

Death toll rises to 21 in Gujarat firework factory explosion

AN EXPLOSION at an illegal firecracker factory in Gujarat's Deesa town killed 21 people and injured several others on Tuesday, officials said.

The blast caused the factory’s concrete roof to collapse, scattering debris and body parts across the area, officials confirmed.

Keep ReadingShow less
Child benefit payments set to rise for UK families

Child benefit, normally paid every four weeks directly into bank accounts, has undergone significant changes in recent months (Photo: Getty Images)

Child benefit payments set to rise for UK families

MILLIONS of British families are set to receive a financial boost as child benefit payments increase from April 7, according to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

From next week, parents will receive £26.05 per week for the eldest or only child, amounting to £1,354.60 annually - up from the current rate of £25.60. For each additional child, payments will rise to £17.25 weekly, totalling £897 per year - an increase from the present £16.95 rate. This represents a 1.7 per cent increase across all payment categories.

Keep ReadingShow less
Anant Ambani Walks 140 Km in Spiritual Tribute on 30th Birthday

Anant’s padyatra is a reflection of the larger cultural fabric of India

Getty

Anant Ambani embarks on a 140-kilometer spiritual journey on foot to celebrate 30th birthday

Anant Ambani, a director of Reliance Industries Limited and a prominent figure in Indian industry, has chosen a unique and spiritual way to mark his 30th birthday. As part of his celebrations, he is currently undertaking a padyatra—a traditional pilgrimage on foot—from Jamnagar to Dwarka, covering a distance of approximately 140 kilometres. The journey reflects his devotion to Lord Dwarkadhish, the presiding deity of the Dwarkadhish Temple in the city of Dwarka.

Anant began his journey from his family’s residence in Moti Khavdi, Jamnagar, and has been progressing steadily for the past five days. Walking an estimated 10-12 kilometres each night, he travels under the protection of Z+ security and local police, ensuring his safety during this significant journey. The padyatra is expected to take between seven to nine days in total, with plans to conclude at the Dwarkadhish Temple in time for his birthday on April 10.

Keep ReadingShow less
New TB action plan proposed as cases surge

Government urged experts to come forward to help draw up a new five-year TB action plan. (Photo: Getty Images)

New TB action plan proposed as cases surge

BRITAIN on Wednesday (2) urged health experts and sufferers of tuberculosis (TB) to come forward to help draw up a new five-year action plan as it deals with record rises in the disease.

In 2023, England recorded its largest annual increase (11 per cent) in cases since enhanced surveillance began in 2000.

Keep ReadingShow less