Braverman Is Right - Multiculturalism Has Failed

'UK has had enough warning shots to know that all is not well when it comes to social cohesion.'

With a devastating General Election result looming over the horizon for the tired and beleaguered Conservatives, the party needs to have a major rethink over what it stands for and the vision it has for post-Brexit Britain.

It is likely that a future Tory Party leadership contest will feature Suella Braverman, who was sacked as Home Secretary by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last November. She is no stranger to controversy when it comes to expressing her views on multiculturalism and identity.

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Braverman has argued that while the UK is a good example of a multi-ethnic society, the policy approach of multiculturalism has utterly failed.

According to her, there has been poor integration – people having poor English-language skills and refusing to embrace conventional liberal democratic values.

Braverman blames the failure to confidently “assert” British values for feeding “big problems of mass extremism on our streets, unprecedented antisemitism and divided communities”.

I am firmly of the view that the UK is a relatively successful example of a sizeable multi-ethnic democracy in the western world.

The United States is a relatively young country which has yet to get to trips with the traumatic legacy of slavery and segregation. It is also the chief exporter of radical-leftist theories based on race, gender, and family.

Across the Channel, the French Fifth Republic’s model of secular republican universalism is proving to be increasingly unworkable with the presence of socially-conservative Muslim minorities.

The US and France lack a royal figurehead that resides above conventional politics and has the potential to be an agent of social cohesion.

Comparatively, the UK’s parliamentary constitutional monarchy is in decent shape.

There is no question that the UK is awash with ethnic-minority success stories based on robust family values, a positive approach to education, and an enterprising work ethic.

These households can trace their origins back to various corners of the world and are deeply appreciative of the opportunities and freedoms of British democracy – this should be a source of national pride.

But it is vital not to romanticise modern Britain, where some of the sharpest social tensions are between and within ethnic and religious minorities.

Whether it is the Hindu-Muslim riots in Leicester, Eritrean political conflict in Camberwell, racial tensions in Peckham, the Afghan-Romanian brawl in Bournemouth, or Islamist antisemitism in the heart of London, the UK has had enough warning shots to know that all is not well when it comes to social cohesion. Diversity is not an unalloyed good.

Those who truly care about British modern democracy will support three key pillars: a radically streamlined immigration system and security-oriented asylum regime, a robust integration program rooted in respect for the rule of law, and active neighbouring policing in urban diverse areas at risk of tribal conflict.

If this requires fundamental changes to our human-rights framework and relationship with international refugee treaties, then so be it.

The status quo is unsustainable - the enjoyment of liberal democratic freedoms rests on strong public security.

It is highly unlikely that a future Labour Government will think along such lines.

The party remains full-to-the-brim with liberal cosmopolitan types who care little for the democratic nation-state and have a largely uncritical view of diversity.

One can only hope that a reinvigorated British political Right takes matters of immigration, integration, and identity seriously. 

Dr Rakib Ehsan is the author of Beyond Grievance: What the Left Gets Wrong about Ethnic Minorities (available to buy on Amazon).