Why the Archbishop of York’s migration comments were out of touch

Bishops need to be more careful when talking about migration, says Rev Ian Paul. Loving your migrant neighbour does not mean avoiding the tough political questions

When bishops and archbishops speak about migration it always hits the headlines—and never ends well.

In 2016, Justin Welby got into trouble when he said that it was quite reasonable to ‘fear’ the consequences of mass migration. ”There is a tendency to say ‘those people are racist’, which is just outrageous, absolutely outrageous.” But in 2023, he got into trouble in the opposite direction, when he said that Government plan to crack down on illegal immigration were “morally unacceptable and politically impractical”. Different comment; same result.

Now, Stephen Cottrell, the Archbishop of York, has dived into the issue, as has Steven Croft, bishop of Oxford, with criticisms of Nigel Farage’s plans to deport illegal migrants.

In an interview with Trevor Phillips on Sky News, Cottrell called Farage’s approach a “isolationist, knee-jerk response” which “will not solve the problem”. The first part of the interview focused on child poverty, but it then moved to the question of migration, and the Reform policy, and Cottrell seemed happy to talk about it.

And this, I think, it where the problems began.

The gospel is not political, but it has clear political implications. So it should not surprise us when Christian leaders comment on political issues. But when they do, I look for three things: that they are well informed; that they are theologically grounded; and that they are pastorally helpful. I am not sure that Stephen Cottrell’s comments met any of these tests….