Northern Ireland

'Wall of noise' from public could force U-turn on controversial asylum legislation - Sarah Brown

Sarah Brown speaking to a Belfast audience during the IoD Women's Leadership Conference on Friday.
Sarah Brown speaking to a Belfast audience during the IoD Women's Leadership Conference on Friday. Sarah Brown speaking to a Belfast audience during the IoD Women's Leadership Conference on Friday.

“A WALL of noise” from the public could force the British Government into a U-turn on its controversial asylum legislation, a leading charity campaigner has said.

Sarah Brown was speaking to a room of 500 people at a women’s leadership conference in Belfast on Friday.

A former resident of Downing Street, when her husband Gordon Brown served as both Chancellor of the Exchequer and Prime Minister, she encouraged the public to use social media to oppose the policy.

“I’ve sat and lived on the inside of government and I know that they hear it when there’s a wall of noise," she said.

Founder of the charity Theirworld, which campaigns for children’s education around the globe, Ms Brown was responding to a question from the audience about the UK Government’s policy on refugees and the reaction to Gary Lineker’s tweets on the issue.

The Match of the Day presenter has been criticised from senior government ministers, including the Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, for likening the language used to set out Downing Street’s immigration plans to “that used by Germany in the 30s”.

The Illegal Migration Bill aims to prevent those arriving illegally in the UK from claiming asylum, and block them from returning or seeking citizenship.

Sarah Brown described the move as “very political”, stating that the Conservative Party appeared to be “speaking to their base”.

“I think we would find it very difficult to change their minds at the moment," she said.

“But I think we all have a duty to speak out and say we have to extend the hand of kindness to people when they are in their greatest difficulty.

“The real question is how you change it and I think any of us should write and share on social media, there should be the biggest noise we can make to push back.

“And this is my secret for how change happens with politicians. They don’t like having a bad day and their horizons are really short.

“If everybody told them this was the worst thing to do, they’d stop.

“But I fear that they’ve decided in 10 Downing Street now that they’re appealing to a group that will help them support it.”

Friday’s conference, organised by the Institute of Directors in Northern Ireland, carried the theme of ‘you can’t be what you can’t see’.

The event also heard from the actress, singer, presenter, author, businesswoman, and politician, Baroness Floella Benjamin.