View from London | The National

Hello from The National and welcome to the View from London – your weekly guide to the big stories from our London bureau Far be it from me to cross-check the meaning of Keir Starmer's language on migration, but there is a point I think everybody is missing in the controversy. Let me introduce you to Zahir. Every year thousands of migrants arrive in the UK by small boat – but one has chosen to smuggle himself out of Britain after his dream of a better life turned into a living nightmare. After he ended up living in a park, Zahir has now tried four times to hide in lorries leaving from the port of Dover on the ferry to France, to try to make it to Germany. Keir Starmer made waves in the UK this week when he declared that net migration running at almost one million extra residents a year had created a squalid situation . He said the UK was at risk of turning into "an island of strangers". It is a summary that chimes with the experience of the 29-year-old, whose surname has been withheld by The National. Zahir fled Afghanistan when the Taliban found out his family had been supplying food to British and American forces. The group commanders killed his father and brother but Zahir escaped. But he has found no solace in the UK's harsh environment for migrants, especially those who arrive by boat. Mr Starmer's critique has been that the smuggling business is cruel and exploitative for those who use it to get to the UK. When here they are housed in hotels, excluded from the workforce and subjected to a regime of refugee processing and/or deportation that works far too slowly. The risk of falling out of the system is high and many lives are ruined in this halfway-house existence. That appears to be Zahir's story. Like Mr Starmer said, it is a squalid chapter. It should be added that Mr Starmer rejects the suggestion that he adopted the mantle of the late hate-monger Enoch Powell to get his new tougher policies across. "The Prime Minister rejects those comparisons and absolutely stands behind the argument he was making that migrants make a massive contribution to our country, but migration needs to be controlled," a spokesman said on Tuesday. It is not surprising that the system set up in response to rising migration is failing. There is systemic failure aplenty in the UK and, as a result, plenty of unhappiness. I've written about how the Labour thinker Maurice Glasman is saying populism is driven by the desire for a clear-out of the system. The popular revolt is against politicians reliant on process and technological systems that appear to prevail over the common sense voters primarily want from government. A “lanyard class” is now set up to become a political target. In an echo of Elon Musk, Lord Glasman said he believes there can be an AI-run delivery of a new politics that “liberates what only humans can do”. As with the Trump administration’s focus on rooting out diversity, equity and inclusion, Lord Glasman told the Policy Exchange think tank that he would root out the thought-policing instincts of government and the “progressive assumptions” that are often used as government-by-checklist. Perhaps enabled by the government's crackdown on migration, the university sector is also in the British taxman's sights in migration measures introduced this week. The plan published on Monday floats a levy that it says will be reinvested in the higher education and skills system. Fees paid by students coming to Britain contribute £12 billion ($15.85 billion) towards the higher education sector. That's already more than half of the overall £20.65 billion contribution to the economy made by international students . UK officials maintain “it is right that these benefits are shared”. Insiders fear it will be another blow to the wobbling finances of what has been a successful tier of the education system. The Office for Students, the higher education regulator, forecast that 43 per cent of universities and colleges in England would be in deficit this year. A three-week opening for efforts to secure recognition of a Palestinian state is on the minds of Parliamentarians in Westminster. Sixty-seven MPs and six peers have signed a letter from Labour Friends of Palestine and the Middle East, written by its chairs, Andrew Pakes and Sarah Owen. It urged Mr Starmer to “work with France” on the recognition at the UN Conference on a Two-State Solution. French President Emmanuel Macron has said France would work towards recognition at the summit. The UK has the “opportunity to advance the cause” of the two-state solution through recognition, the letter said. Asked in Parliament whether Britain would formally recognise a Palestinian state, Middle East minister Hamish Falconer forecast “a period for diplomacy which will get us through to the next stage”. Lebanon's ambassador to Britain, Rami Mortada, used a visit to Parliament to urge the government to formally recognise the Palestinian state and put “major momentum” behind efforts to end the "forever war". You may have heard US President Donald Trump is in Saudi Arabia. Our London-based resident defence specialist Thomas Harding has been looking at the arms deal the US leader struck in Saudi Arabia. One thing to note is the over-the-horizon missiles that were the talking point of the recent conflagration between Pakistan and India. The US is selling 1,000 AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles. The AIM 120s are highly capable, “beyond visual range” missiles similar to the Chinese-made PL-15 that is thought to have shot down at least one Indian air force Rafale jet last week. It has a range of 160km, with a 20kg warhead, travels at Mach 4 and is capable of all-weather day or night operations.