Paddy Lillis – Usdaw General Secretary says: “In Britain the Tory Government is
attempting to use racism to generate the politics of divide and rule in our communities and make ordinary people pay for the cost of living crisis.
 
“Their rhetoric of an ‘invasion’ of Southern England and the Rwanda plan to deport asylum seekers is designed to create a hostile environment for refugees and migrants.
 
“It is targeting the most vulnerable and costing many lives. More deaths in the Channel and the attack on accommodation housing asylum seekers in Knowsley has shown us once again the reality of these policies in practice.
 
“Never has it been more important for trade union activists to stand together against the forces in our society and workplaces that seek to divide us. It’s the Conservative Government’s austerity policies that are responsible for the attack on our living standards – not migrant workers or refugees.”
 
Notes for editors:
 
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is the UK's fifth biggest trade union with around 360,000 members. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also has many members in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemical industry and other trades.
 
Stand up Racism: https://standuptoracism.org.uk
 
For Usdaw press releases visit: http://www.usdaw.org.uk/news and you can follow us on Twitter @UsdawUnion