The home secretary, Shabana Mahmood, says that her plans to overhaul the asylum system are rooted in “Labour values”. The proposals include removing government support for some asylum seekers and limiting initial refugee status from five years to 30 months. In a Guardian op-ed, Mahmood wrote that these values, uniting working-class communities, social reformers and immigrants are: First, a belief in fairness: recognising that the dice are loaded against working-class communities. Second, tolerance towards others, that very British desire to live and let live. Third, a quiet but determined patriotism, for a country that is forever changing while something ineffable always endures. But immigration has long been a topic where Labour’s values clash with one another. The protectionist roots of the trade union movement saw foreign labour as a threat to undercutting wages and job displacement. Historically, unions adopted a highly restrictive position on immigration. At the same time, the inclusive principles of equality and representation of the working class (of which many racial minorities were part) complicated this picture. This tension was evident in …