LONDON – On Monday, Sajid Javid, Britain’s new Home Secretary and the firstperson of South Asian origin to hold that position, stood up in Parliamentto recount the experiences of his own family who moved to Britain fromPakistan in the 1960s.
He had been “greatly” impacted by revelations around the experiences ofthose who have come to be known as the Windrush generation: migrants fromthe Caribbean Commonwealth who had come to the U.K. at a time when they hadthe right to remain indefinitely in Britain, but had had their rightsquestioned under a toughened immigration regime.Why is it important?
The changes are likely to have impacted nationals from across theCommonwealth who arrived in Britain before 1973. “When I heard that peoplewho were long-standing pillars of their communities were being impacted forsimply not having the right documents to prove their legal status in theU.K., I thought that that could be my mum, my brother, my uncle or evenme,” he told the Commons as he sought to staunch a crisis engulfing thegovernment with a commitment to a “fair and humane” immigration policy.Just the day before Mr. Javid had spoken of these thoughts in an interviewto *The Daily Telegraph*, making his appointment as Home Minister,following the resignation of Amber Rudd, all but inevitable.
Much has been made of Mr. Javid’s ascent from relative poverty to becomethe first non-white person to hold one of the so-called four Great Officesof State in Britain, traditionally considered the most powerful andprestigious governmental roles.What is his background?
The 48-year-old Javid’s story fits with the vision of upward mobility thathas long held appeal in the Conservative Party — not least through formerPrime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who also rose from relatively humbleorigins. According to various interviews given by Mr. Javid, his fatherarrived in the U.K. from Pakistan with £1 in his pocket, working an arrayof jobs, including in a cotton mill and as bus driver. Born in the U.K.,Mr. Javid was the first in his family to go to university. He moved intofinance, rising to a senior role at Chase Manhattan and then Deutsche Bankwhere he became a senior managing director.
His move into politics — and government, where he began with a ministerialrole in the Treasury in 2011 — was touted as a coup for the government, asit attempted to entice professional, no-nonsense voices into its ranks. Hiscareer within it has, however, been marked by peaks and troughs — thelatter including a failure to meet a pledge to re-home survivors of theGrenfell Tower tragedy within a year.Will he bring in a new policy?
In the aftermath of the Windrush revelations, the government has attemptedto separate the issue from the “hostile environment” it hopes to create forillegal immigration. Mr. Javid appeared to keep on script, insisting thathe wanted a system that “welcomes and celebrates people who are herelegally” while at the same time clamping down “decisively on illegalimmigration.”
While he has had the odd moment of public candour, when he lambasted U.S.President Donald Trump’s re-tweet of a posting by Islamophoblic groupBritain First, referencing his own Muslim background, Mr. Javid’s votingrecord in Parliament on immigration-related issues has firmly stuck withthe party line.
His record on other issues suggests he is adept at thriving in thepolitical environment he finds himself in. While in the run-up to Brexit,he spoke up for the Remain campaign, but he has since toed the governmentline, stressing the need to follow the “will” of the people. This week, heis said to have joined the ranks of those opposing the Prime Minister’splans for a customs partnership with the EU.
With more and more revelations pointing to flaws in Britain’s immigrationpolicy — from its treatment of doctors to accusations that it wronglydeported thousands of students — emerging by the day, whether Mr. Javid’slofty pledges of change amount to anything more than rhetoric will becomeapparent pretty quickly.