Lewisham to Block Immigration Raids as Sanctuary Borough
Green-Led Council Challenges Home Office Enforcement
Traveloasisspot.com – The Green administration in Lewisham is moving to formalize its status as a London sanctuary borough by restricting cooperation with Home Office immigration enforcement. Councillors will vote next week on proposals to systematically decline participation in illegal working inspections whenever legislation allows. This policy shift positions the borough as a leader in protecting migrant communities from what officials describe as aggressive raid tactics.
Local representatives argue that current enforcement approaches disproportionately target communities based on ethnicity while intimidating workers during inspections. The council plans to build a “corridor of sanctuary” through partnerships with migrant organizations, law centres, faith groups, and anti-raids networks across the capital.
“ICE-style immigration raids tear people away from their families, their neighbours and their communities, and have no place in a decent society.”
The initiative draws inspiration from American cities including New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, and Philadelphia, which have similarly limited collaboration with federal immigration authorities. Green Party leader Zack Polanski praised the effort, highlighting “brave, compassionate Green councils in London working to create a corridor of Sanctuary where nobody, no matter where they’re from or what papers they have, has to live in fear of being snatched away from the place they call home.”
Statistics and Political Context
The proposed motion argues that sharing information with the Home Office contradicts the borough’s sanctuary designation. This comes after a documented 77 per cent increase in illegal working inspections since the Labour Party took power, with Lewisham conducting 261 operations independently last year. Government officials attribute this rise to efforts targeting human traffickers who facilitate unauthorized entry into Britain.
“Under our Green administration, we are committing to a comprehensive review of council systems and processes with the aim of refusing to assist the Home Office or Immigration Enforcement teams during raids wherever legally possible.”
Lewisham Mayor Liam Shrivastava, who took leadership from Labour following May’s local elections, outlined plans to work with other Green-led administrations on an anti-raids Sanctuary Corridor. The mayor also pledged support for local initiatives helping migrant communities understand their legal rights.
Hau-Yu Tam, the cabinet member for sanctuary and healing, recalled a previous incident when Immigration Minister Mike Tapp visited with a Sky News crew to inspect businesses in Brockley and Catford. She noted that the Green Group had previously introduced a similar motion condemning these operations, but the Labour administration blocked it from debate.
“The Lewisham Green Group brought forward an earlier version of this motion condemning these attacks on our neighbours and calling for an end to cooperation with the raids, but the Labour administration shamefully filibustered it so it could not even be debated.”
Tam emphasized that after meeting with migrant business owners facing targeted inspections, she witnessed “the terror these raids instil in already disadvantaged communities.” She stated that “communities are targeted on the basis of race, while officers intimidate workers into believing they have no choice but to cooperate, even when they are acting beyond their legal powers.”
A Home Office spokesperson defended the approach, stating that “while all immigration enforcement visits are intelligence led, we make no apology for joining forces with local authorities to enable information sharing and ultimately fighting criminals who fuel immigration crime.” The department noted that “since coming into power, we have increased Immigration Enforcement action to the highest level in British history,” citing an 83 per cent rise in illegal working arrests and a 77 per cent increase in raids between July 1, 2024 and December.
