Britain’s Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has issued one of the bluntest assessments by a senior government figure in recent years, warning that the United Kingdom is becoming “more racist” as public anger over illegal immigration intensifies and mainstream politicians—particularly on the extreme Left—refuse to acknowledge the scale of the crisis.
In a wide-ranging interview with The Times, Mahmood said race relations have deteriorated sharply, driven not only by the migration debate but also by what she described as political denialism within sections of the governing Labour Party. The Home Secretary, the first Muslim woman to hold the role, said she and her family have been subjected to frequent racist and anti-Muslim abuse—an experience she believes reflects a broader national trend.
“More racist abuse than at any time in my life”
Mahmood said the rise in hate incidents is unmistakable.
“It’s not a new thing for me,” she said, “but there’s a lot more of it around recently than there has been over the course of the rest of my life.”
Members of her immediate and extended family—including her parents, siblings and cousins—have also faced racist insults in recent months. “People are being sworn at, told to ‘go back home’. That’s becoming a bit too common again,” she told the paper.
Mahmood’s comments come amid a surge in reported hate crimes across the UK, and growing political polarization over immigration, asylum claims and social integration.
Warning to the political Left: “Stop gaslighting the public”
The Birmingham-born minister, whose parents emigrated from Kashmir in the 1960s and ’70s, argued that mainstream politicians—especially those on the hard Left—risk further inflaming tensions if they continue to dismiss public frustration over immigration.
“People see a system that’s broken,” she said. “They have the evidence of their own eyes, and it is perfectly right for them to talk to their MPs about it. We should not gaslight them.”
Mahmood warned that failure to address genuine concerns could empower extremist actors such as Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which has capitalized on frustration over migration and multiculturalism.
“If the mainstream fails to deal with it, darker forces will prevail,” she said.
Shaping migration policy through lived experience
Mahmood said her approach to immigration reform has been informed by her upbringing in an immigrant household and by the experiences of constituents in Birmingham, where debates around housing, jobs and community resources are often intertwined with migration concerns.
She rejected claims that tough border policies contradict progressive values, arguing instead that a functioning, credible system is essential to rebuilding trust.
“People felt immigration policy was done to them, not with them,” she said. “Whatever they were promised did not match reality.”
The Labour government’s new migration overhaul
Mahmood’s intervention follows a series of major announcements from the Home Office. Earlier this week, she laid out what the government described as the “biggest overhaul” of migration rules in years—shifting the UK toward an “earned settlement” model that links permanent residency rights to economic contribution.
Under the new plan:
- The baseline residency requirement for settlement will double from five to 10 years,
- Higher taxpayers may qualify for faster settlement pathways,
- Refugee and asylum policies will be tightened to prioritize genuine claims and discourage irregular migration.
The reforms mark a significant pivot for Labour, which historically championed more liberal approaches to migration but now faces pressure to balance humanitarian commitments with public demands for stronger border control.
Race relations at a crossroads
Mahmood’s remarks highlight a growing anxiety across British politics: rising racism and xenophobia on one hand, and widespread distrust of the immigration system on the other. Her unusual willingness to speak openly about both issues underscores the delicate balancing act facing the UK government.
Whether the new policies will succeed in restoring public confidence—or whether they will deepen divisions—remains to be seen. But her message was clear: failing to confront reality could push British society into even more polarized and hostile territory.
