UK Labour Party Orders Members to Avoid Raising Immigration Issue: Reports

MOSCOW, December 15 (Sputnik) – The UK Labour Party’s members of parliament have been instructed by the party’s headquarters not to raise the issue of immigration during campaigning, as such comments could lead to a defeat in the upcoming 2015 general election, The Telegraph reported, citing a private Labour Party strategy document.

”Our advice is therefore that we should: listen carefully to electors’ concerns on immigration on the doorstep and engage with their views before moving the conversation on to how Labour would tackle the issues they have raised [whether they be housing, education, the NHS, etc.],” the document obtained by The Telegraph read.

The 33-page guidance called "Campaigning against [the UK Independence Party] UKIP" recently distributed to the Labour Party members of parliament outlines a strategy aimed at winning back and securing the support of voters following the party's defeat in the European Parliament elections.

The document stated that immigration is a complex and sensitive issue, thus addressing the problem proactively “risks undermining the broad coalition of support we need to return to government.”

UKIP, which wants the United Kingdom to leave the European Union, received 27.49 percent of the vote in the 2014 European Parliament elections – the largest share among British parties. The party recognizes limited, controlled immigration, but says immigrants must only be eligible for benefits after paying taxes in Britain for at least five years.

The center-left Labour Party got 25.4 percent of the vote at the 2014 European Parliament Election, losing partially because of its unclear position toward immigration, one of the most acute issues in the United Kingdom.

General elections in United Kingdom are scheduled for May 2015, when voters will elect representatives to sit in the House of Commons – the country’s lower house of parliament.