The great wave of migration that is overwhelming Europe’s frontiers is an important test of our humanity. We are haunted by images of people packed into airless trucks, stacked in unseaworthy boats and lacerated by barbed wire in their desperation to escape from war and poverty. People smuggling has become a huge criminal enterprise. And still the refugees, asylum seekers and economic migrants come — seemingly oblivious to the scenes of suffocation and drowning.
This is just the visible edge of a vast movement of people that is exerting its pull on the world’s dispossessed, drawing Central Americans to the border between the United States and Mexico and Asians to the shores of Australia. There is evidence that 40% of the population of poor nations would emigrate if they could. With increasing globalisation, the lure of a more secure, prosperous life in the developed world has never been greater.
The consequences for Britain can be seen in the immigration figures released by the Office for National Statistics last week. One in every eight Britons, 8m in all, was born overseas. Total net migration last year was 330,000, enough for a sizeable town.
The home secretary Theresa May is right to warn in our pages that this is “a wake-up call for the EU”. There are limits to every country’s hospitality and ability to absorb huge numbers of immigrants without undue strain on the political and social fabric. Yet these considerations must also be tempered with a proper concern for the welfare of those who seek our shelter.
There is nothing humane about encouraging immigrants to put their lives in the hands of the people smugglers and haphazardly accepting those who manage to make it to our shores. It is far better to use our aid budget to support migrants as close as possible to their countries of origin.
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In the case of Syria, which has suffered a huge displacement of people during its civil war, the ultimate aim must be for its refugees to return home. Neighbouring Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey are hosting more than 3m refugees; they deserve not only our praise but all the support they can get. In Libya we must redouble our efforts to restore a semblance of order. Consideration should also be given to setting up facilities in Tunisia for determining whether migrants are genuine asylum seekers.
David Cameron will have his work cut out to persuade his European Union partners that their faith in open borders must be balanced with practical policy making. But try he must. In this, our reputation for tolerance, hospitality towards asylum seekers and long experience of immigration should stand us in good stead. The only way to stop the tide of suffering and those who are profiteering from it is to be firm and fair.