Backlash to 'cowardly' Suella Braverman after she blames 'activist blob' civil servants for 'blocking small boats plan'

8 March 2023, 13:13 | Updated: 8 March 2023, 13:53

Union bosses have launched a stinging attack on Suella Braverman after the Home Secretary said an "activist blob" including civil servants had blocked earlier Tory attempts to prevent small boat crossings.

Dave Penman, general secretary of the civil servants' FDA union, said Ms Braverman was "cowardly" to blame "left-wing lawyers, civil servants and the Labour Party" for blocking the government's previous attempts to deal with the small boats crisis.

Mr Penman added that Ms Braverman may also have broken the ministerial code by suggesting that the civil service had acted impartially.

It came after ministers announced a new plan to crack down on Channel crossings, telling MPs on Tuesday that any migrants entering the UK illegally would be "detained and swiftly removed".

Mr Penman told LBC's James O'Brien on Wednesday that Ms Braverman had made "an extraordinary allegation" about the civil service.

General Secretary of the FDA union: Braverman must protect the impartiality of the civil service.

He said: "It’s factually incorrect and she has a duty as a government minister… to protect the impartiality of the civil service."

Mr Penman added that civil servants accept that they may have to implement policies they do not agree with.

"You don’t go and work in the Home Office if you don’t want to implement difficult policy," he said. "For that to be criticised by the Home Secretary is just extraordinary."

Read more: Suella Braverman faces backlash over claim 'billions' of people are trying to reach UK

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Mr Penman said in an earlier letter to the Prime Minister that Ms Braverman's criticism of civil servants, sent in an email to Conservative members, was "an extraordinary statement from a serving Home Secretary."

"Not only is this statement factually incorrect, but the tone of that paragraph and the brigading of civil servants with the Labour Party and 'left-wing lawyers' is a direct attack on the integrity and impartiality of the thousands of civil servants who loyally serve the Home Secretary."

He added: "I am sure I do not need to remind you that paragraph 5.1 of the ministerial code states that 'ministers must uphold the political impartiality of the civil service'.

"I cannot see how the Home Secretary's statement to Conservative Party members can be reconciled with her obligations under the code."

He went on: "This cowardly attack on civil servants, whom the Home Secretary knows are unable to defend themselves, also risks stoking further tensions over a matter which has previously resulted in violent clashes with protesters."

Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ) is "reviewing" its internal clearance processes, it said, as it admitted Suella Braverman did not see the wording of a widely-criticised email sent in her name.

A Conservative Party spokesperson said: "This was a CCHQ email and the wording wasn't seen by the Home Secretary. We are now reviewing our internal clearance processes."

The Home Secretary has already been fired for breaching the ministerial code. Then-Prime Minister Liz Truss sacked her on October 19 for sharing an official document on a private email account. Rishi Sunak then reappointed her six days later, sparking outrage.

Another civil service union joined in the criticism of the government's new policy.

PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “The government’s morally reprehensible and inhumane policy will not deter those desperately seeking asylum.

“The only way to protect human life and prevent people drowning in the Channel is to give asylum seekers safe passage, invest in the Home to ensure staff have the time, space and resources to properly determine asylum claims and reform immigration detention centres, so refugees are helped rather than punished.”

Ms Braverman is also facing a backlash after claiming that "likely billions" of people are eager to come to the UK.

The home secretary, who is championing the Government's controversial plans to stop small boat crossings, said people will not stop trying to get to Britain until it's made "crystal clear" they will be deported if they arrive illegally.

She has been accused of adopting "extremist" language in new remarks about how many people want to get into the UK.

Writing in the Daily Mail, Ms Braverman said: "In the face of today's global migration crisis, yesterday's laws are simply not fit for purpose.

"There are 100 million people displaced around the world, and likely billions more eager to come here if possible.

"They are already coming here in their tens of thousands. And they will not stop until we've made it crystal clear: Arrive illegally and you will be liable for detention and swiftly removed – to your home country or to a safe third country like Rwanda.

"That is precisely what the Illegal Migration Bill will do. That is how we will stop the boats."

Ms Braverman, who was previously in hot water for comparing migrant crossings to an "invasion", has been heavily criticised for using the figure - which represents a massive proportion of the world's population.

The UK has seen numbers in the tens of thousands try to make the perilous journey over the Channel - well below millions or billions. In 2022, more than 45,000 were said to have crossed.

The UN's refugee agency has described the Government's asylum plans to stop small boat crossings as "very concerning" as Rishi Sunak has warned he is "up for the fight" against any legal challenges to his controversial new Bill.

The UNHCR representative to the UK said it would break international law and was not necessary.

Ms Braverman, announcing the new Bill, promised that people who arrived in the UK illegally will be removed "within weeks" and receive a lifetime ban on claiming asylum.

Ms Braverman told MPs the Illegal Migration Bill will "stop the boats" which are bringing "tens of thousands" of people to the UK.