Who are these strangers,
Threatening our way of life,
Threatening our decency
Threatening our morality
Dragging our country down
Who only care for themselves
Who are willing to do anything, anything, for money
Who are these strangers who have broken up communities
Who have thrown people out from their homes
Who have abandoned the young and the innocent
Who have turned deceit into a lifestyle?
They are not the quiet ones who spend hours and hours each week running food banks and soup kitchens
They are not the thousand upon thousand who run, cycle, swim and dance for charity,
They are not the cheerful volunteers doing their best to help the creaking schools and hospitals, parks and canals, libraries and museums
They are not the millions of parents struggling to give their children the best start in life
They are not the ones who struggle to keep a roof over their heads
They are not the truly religious who selflessly give and give and give again
They are not the huggers and laughers who brighten our days
They are not the decent majority looking out for others always willing to lend a hand
They have not got England’s dirt under their fingernails
They have not sweated for a pittance
They have not grafted for others
These strangers look like you or me
These strangers are not from abroad,
They live in our villages, towns and cities
They drive on the same streets as we do
They walk on the same pavements we do
But they are not the same as us
They are the people who would turn away a child in need
They are the people who would seek profit from your sickness
They are the people who would sell your schools
They are the people who would lie to you, cheat, you, misrepresent you
They are the people who would make war on others
They are the people who would belittle you because you care
They are the people who would take away your voice and vote, if they could,
They are the people who make me ashamed because I have to share my country with them
And they act in my name even though I did not vote for them.
These strangers, how did we let them in to our beautiful lives, how have we let them take charge of our beautiful country, how did we let it get so bad?
written the day after 297 Tory MPs voted not to take 3000 unaccompanied refugee children, the day after the Hillsborough inquest reached its verdict and on the day when doctors were striking because they cared for the NHS.