Europe is facing a humanitarian crisis, far too serious to be reduced to being the subject of petty political point-scoring

Despite David Cameron's flippant dismissal, something must be done to aid those suffering in Europe's humanitarian crisis. Photograph: Calais Jungle on 17 January 2016 by Malachy Browne (License) (Cropped)

In a week where Chancellor George Osborne had given the government one miniature PR crisis by claiming the retrieval of 3% Tax from Google as a victory (Churcher & Woodcock, 2016), it was almost inconceivable that a member of the government could make things worse. Almost.

During Wednesday's Prime Ministers Questions, Prime Minister David Cameron, as nothing more than a cheap shot at his opponent Jeremy Corbyn, dismissed the refugees in the 'Calais Jungle' camp as 'a bunch of migrants' (Dearden, 2016). The Prime Minister has been roundly criticised for his lack of tact or concern.

The particularly troubling thing is that this is neither Cameron's, nor his government's, first time treating the, largely Syrian, refugees that have fled to Europe with such disdain. A senior minister and Cameron himself have previously dehumanised refugees with words like 'swarm' and suggestions that towns were being 'swamped by migrants' (Elgot & Taylor, 2015; Syal, 2014).

This Conservative attitude does their position no favours and does them no credit. Having already resoundingly rejected UK involvement in taking a share in a proposed Europe-wide support network for those refugees who have fled into Europe (Parker & Robinson, 2016; BBC, 2016), such language doesn't paint their stance in a positive light.

As it happens, Cameron's stated priorities with regards to the refugee crisis are not tremendously far from the broad consensus: the people, made refugees by war, want to go home (Capaldi, 2016).

Cameron's plan is for the UK, firstly, to support the refugees who have stayed in North Africa and the Middle East (Watt, 2015). Then, secondly, to push for international resolution on a plan to create safe spaces in war-torn Syria, to allow those fleeing to return home.

Leading progressives like Guy Verhofstadt, former Prime Minister of Belgium and leader of the Liberals in the European Parliament, have stressed the need for similar priorities (Verhofstadt, 2016). Yet Verhofstadt also points out the big weakness undermining those in Cameron's position: being too tied up in managing and attempting to satisfy domestic nationalism to tackle the bigger picture.

However much of a priority it is, truly, to provide aid to those who have remained in Syria and Lebanon, the fact remains that turning a blind eye to those who have, and continue, to arrive in Europe will not solve anything. In Europe, conditions are worsening, restrictions are getting more severe, and there is a risk of hearts turning colder (BBC, 2015; Crouch & Kingsley, 2016).

What is especially unhelpful in that charged atmosphere are comments that belittle or dehumanise refugees, especially when those comments come from a Head of Government - and one who is, no less, part of the continental council whose job it is to come up with a solution to this major humanitarian crisis.

How can a political figure think anyone could take them seriously if they can be so flippant about people in distress? How can they be relied upon, trusted, to develop a respectful and humane response to a very human crisis?

This isn't a time for cheap, political point-scoring. Like it or not, refugees are here in Europe. Pettiness won't change that, only a concerted humanitarian effort in both Europe and the Middle East can alleviate their plight. Being prepared to stand together in support of vulnerable people is the only way out of this crisis.

References

Joe Churcher & Andrew Woodcock's 'George Osborne insists Google tax deal is a "major success": Chancellor says he understands public's "frustration and anger" but that he always seeks "best deal for Britain"'; in the Independent; 28 January 2016.

Lizzie Dearden's 'David Cameron's 'bunch of migrants' comments spark 'hypocrisy' claims on international Holocaust Memorial Day: 'Were Jewish people fleeing the Nazis in the 1930s “a bunch of migrants”?' one person asked on Twitter'; in The Independent; 27 January 2016.

Jessica Elgot & Matthew Taylor's 'Calais crisis: Cameron condemned for 'dehumanising' description of migrants - Rights groups and opposition criticise PM for labelling migrants a ‘swarm of people’, and UN representative says UK is not dealing responsibly with crisis'; in The Guardian; 30 July 2015.

Rajeev Syal's 'Michael Fallon's ‘swamped by migrants’ remark leaves Tories in disarray: Defence minister’s comments about immigration prompt hasty climbdown by No 10'; in The Guardian; 26 October 2014.

George Parker & Duncan Robinson's 'Cameron opposes change to EU ‘Dublin’ rule on hosting of refugees'; in the Financial Times; 20 January 2016.

'Cameron faces refugee 'burden' battle as EU draws up new scheme'; on the BBC; 20 January 2016.

Peter Capaldi's 'Peter Capaldi a.k.a. Dr Who meets Syrian refugees in Jordan with UNHCR'; from YouTube, for the UNHCR - United Nations Refugee Agency; 27 January 2016.

Nicholas Watt's 'David Cameron: EU countries must do more to fund refugee camps - British PM, on visit to camps in Lebanon and Jordan, says other countries should ‘step up to the plate’ and increase aid'; in The Guardian; 14 September 2015.

Guy Verhofstadt's 'Lock EU leaders in a room until the refugee crisis is sorted: Europe is running out of time. Petty nationalism must take a back seat, starting with the UK’s Brexit talks'; in The Independent; 23 January 2016.

'Migrant crisis: More EU states impose border checks'; on the BBC; 14 September 2015.

David Crouch & Patrick Kingsley's 'Danish parliament approves plan to seize assets from refugees: New laws allow police to search asylum seekers and luggage to secure cash and valuables, along with several other restrictive measures to deter migration'; in The Guardian; 26 January 2016.