Labour must fully support freedom of movement – if we don't, our voters will not forgive us

For as long as I’ve been a member of the party, Labour politicians have stressed the need for a “proper discussion on immigration”. Conscious of appearing squeamish over the very real pressures facing British workers, progressives have been bounced into adopting positions that defy the party’s internationalist tradition and, crucially, the best interests of those most in need of a Labour government.

With Brexit providing the mother of all discussions on immigration, it is high time that the country’s foremost progressive movement settled on a position that safeguards the future of the millions currently at the mercy of the confused approach of this unstable Conservative Government.

In my constituency of Hampstead and Kilburn, establishing a clear position on freedom of movement is of the utmost importance. Our area is home to over 17,000 EU nationals and an even greater number of British citizens whose futures are quite obviously interdependent.

As their elected representative to the House of Commons, I have been inundated with their concerns over how future immigration rules are shaping up. While the Government’s official position papers claim “EU citizens are valued members of their communities”, leaked Home Office documents actively degrade their vital contribution to this country’s economy and society.

My constituents fear that draconian curbs on EU migration to Britain will lead to either redundancy or relocations from their current workplace, but are clear that work-based worries are just the tip of their very own Brexit iceberg.

Post-exit immigration rules will determine where their relatives can live, love, and make their long-term futures. Locally there is clear consensus that a curtailment of their ability to cross borders, and to deny the benefits currently offered through our single market membership, will only serve to make the collective community poorer. There is also consensus on the fact that there is nothing patriotic or optimistic about a future that provides social mobility for the few, rather than the many.

Conference, therefore, provides my Labour family with the perfect opportunity to address the concerns of my constituents and the millions around the country who share their anxieties.

This process can begin by dismantling the bogus arguments that have defined the immigration debate in Britain. We should seize the chance to expose the argument of fanatical Brexiteers for what it truly is – bigotry disguised as patriotism – and to adopt a position that ensures progressive politics has a place in the debate over what a successful post-EU Britain must look like.

We must then confront the arguments – too often found on the political left – that freedom of movement is responsible for deregulation in the workplace. We must not give a free pass to exploitative employers, nor to consecutive Tory administrations that have failed to provide proper rights and protections for British workers. Free movement enhances everyone’s rights, providing access to benefits, healthcare and other public services. By opposing these rights for Europeans who wish to build their life in Britain, we pave the way for unprincipled employers to roll back these protections for us all.

We must also argue that institutions, such as the NHS, fought for and built by Labour governments, have been sustained by migrant workers, not sabotaged by them. Our policy must be based on evidence rather than one caught up in the hapless nostalgia for “the good old days” which never truly existed. It must be based on the overwhelming evidence that European migrants are net contributors to our nation’s finances and therefore vital to the public services that we all cherish.

The public won’t thank us for equivocating, while the Government pursues a path which promises to lead the economy and our way of life over a cliff edge.

Many debates will take place at Labour Party Conference, but there will be nothing more consequential than moves to formally support freedom of movement. Rule changes affecting leadership contests are significant, but they are ultimately inward-looking. The public cares far more about our approach to the issues confronting their day-to-day lives. By underlining our commitment to the rights and protections enshrined in freedom of movement, Labour will prove that we are not only having the much-heralded “honest conversation about immigration”, but we are actively promoting a better future for all.

Tulip Siddiq is the MP for Hampstead and Kilburn