OF CABBAGES AND KINGS | UK Labour Battles Reform Challenge, Drive To Spew Hate Over Immigration | Farrukh Dhondy

“My adopted back is the duck’s

With feathers that brush off the rain

So, no matter how many f****s

Are shot at me, it’s my gain

And a sign of the abuser’s loss:

Though curses come like monsoon flak

They make me smile, I don’t give a toss

--Water flowing off a duck’s back?”

From The Ghoolies of Gaali Gulley, by Bachchoo

Autumn was to Keats a season of mists and mellow fruitfulness. To British hacks -- journalists -- it’s the season of party conferences, which this year’s so far have given prime attention and space to the issue of immigration.

The opinion polls now say that Labour’s main opposition is not the Conservative Party any longer but the relatively new “national-socialist” (echoes anyone?) party called Reform, whose leader Nigel Farage uses anti-immigrant policies to rouse the rabble.

Remember Donald Trump had claimed Haitian immigrants were eating American pet cats and dogs? Mr Farage recently claimed that immigrants are eating British swans.

The agency in charge of swans says it’s utter nonsense.

Of course, the main target of this anti-immigration propaganda from Nigelastika and his party, to focus the antagonisms and get some specific people within its sights, are Muslim asylum-seekers and even the resident, naturalised, passport-holding British Muslims.

So, at the recent rally called by the openly-racist, criminal demagogue Tommy Robinson, his followers carried Christian crosses -- not to signal their devotion to Jesus, or any love-thy-neighbour sentiment, but to signal their anti-Muslim credentials.

At the same rally, the now exposed “friend” (client?) of paedo-pimp Jeffrey Epstein, Elon Musk, appeared by video to provoke the crowd to take to the streets to “reclaim” the streets of what he termed a “divided Britain”.

And then there is President Trump’s statement on no less a platform that the United Nations General Assembly, where he claims that Sadiq Khan, the elected mayor of London, is imposing Sharia law on the British capital city. That really is as absurd as claiming that the Pope is currently on Haj pilgrimage to Mecca, or even that the Pope, being American, is an ardent MAGAwalla!

But things get more and more absurd. There’s a fellow called Douglas Murray who is, through his regular columns in the ultra-right-wing press, a dedicated competitor in the Swastika Stakes. This last week he published a reaction to Keir Starmer, France, Germany, Canada, Australia and now others announcing their recognition of a Palestinian state. His theory in this article was that Muslim immigrants have so infiltrated the governments of all these countries that their Prime Ministers have been coerced by Islamic force majeure of some sort to take this decision.

There is now firm evidence through the opinion polls that this nasty, lying propaganda is making an impact. Last week several public polls said that Reform was leading Labour and that could mean that Nigel Farage would, if an election was to be held now, become Britain’s Prime Minister.

Labour has had to take these polls seriously -- and it has. A few weeks before their annual conference, the Labour government and Labour Party suffered two major setbacks. The Deputy PM, Angela Rayner, was tainted with the claim that she had bought a house and dodged paying tax on the transfer of funds she used to buy it. She claimed, to my mind plausibly, that it was an error of judgment as she followed what she thought was the advice she’d been given by an estate agent and not a criminal intent to dodge tax. Nevertheless, such was the outcry from the Opposition and their supporters in the press, that she thought it best for the government and party to resign, which she did.

Then there was the questioning of Keir Starmer’s judgment when it was revealed that Peter Mandelson, whom he had appointed as ambassador to the United States, was a firm friend and supporter of Jeffrey Epstein and continued to be even after the latter’s conviction in 2008. Mandelson resigned -- another blow to Sir Keir Starmer’s judgement and leadership.

His shuffling of the Cabinet after Ms Rayner’s departure may be seen as a fightback. He moved an MP, Shabana Mahmood, from the post of justice secretary to home secretary. Ms Mahmood, in her new job, immediately addressed what could be seen as an attempt to challenge the Reform Party’s appeal to voters on the immigrant issue.

Reform has made some rather rash statements which they think will convince Britain’s gullible, right-wing voters to propel them into the government. They are promising, without quite saying how, to “stop the boats”, which means prevent asylum-seekers coming across the English Channel from France, in some weeks by their hundreds. They now say they will not allow them to stay and parcel them off to countries like Afghanistan, who will be induced with monetary payments to take them. Their fate there would not be of any concern to the Reform government, even if torture or execution would face these deportees.

Ms Mahmood’s plans, touted as contrastingly decent, fair and inclusive, would ensure that all immigrants contribute to Britain’s economy in some useful and non-substitutable way and also that new immigrants pass tests of proficiency in the English language.

She hasn’t quite defined how far she wants this proficiency to go. Would it entail being able to outline the prices of a pack of cigarettes to potential customers, to know the words to politely refuse to sell alcohol to under-age buyers or calling emergency to report shoplifting?

Or would it extend to writing erudite essays on Milton’s works?