Ed Miliband will admit that the Labour government made mistakes on immigration and the “realities of segregation” in a speech in south London later today.
“Too little” was done to help people settle in Britain integrate into society, he will say, while also stressing how proud he is of “multi-ethnic, diverse Britain”.
The speech will contain proposals for how a new Labour government would tackle these issues. At the centre of his plan is language – every citizen should know how to speak English, and staff in publicly-funded jobs who interact with the public should be able to demonstrate proficiency in the language.
The Guardian’s Nicholas Watt reports that the Labour leader will propose that English language teaching for newcomers be prioritised over funding for “non-essential written translation materials” and that “statements on English language learning within Home School Agreements” to share responsibility for children’s language learning between parents and schools.
Miliband will also emphasise that this set of proposals is part of the “One Nation” framework he set out in his party conference speech earlier this year and not a “dog whistle” attempt to prevent Labour defections to the BNP. He will say:
“We can only converse if we can speak the same language. So if we are going to build One Nation, we need to start with everyone in Britain knowing how to speak English. We should expect that of people that come here. We will work together as a nation far more effectively when we can always talk together.”
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