Senior Tories attack Howard over immigration

6.00.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 19th Apr 2005

A group of senior Conservative frontbenchers have pleaded with Michael Howard to tone down his asylum and immigration rhetoric according to an article in today's Guardian. "We should not turn into a single-issue party" one source told the Guardian.

This revelation comes hot on the heals of claims by Howard that Britain faces the threat of new race riots if people believe immigration is out of control. Jonathan Dimbleby, presenter of ITV's Ask The Leaders show, asked if he feared a repeat of the race riots seen in some northern towns. Mr Howard replied "Yes. I think people have to have confidence in the system. They have to understand there is a proper system of controls and that gives people reassurance. And I think that when people believe that there is no proper system, that immigration is out of control, I think that these anxieties ... make it more difficult to have good community relations.''

In an angry exchange, audience member Dean Velani,(an 18 year old Asian gap year student), accused the Tory leader of "shambolic opportunism to pander to Middle England".

The Tory asylum and immigration policy is not only unprincipled, playing on people's fears in order to boost their poll ratings, but also unworkable. They want to send all asylum seekers to an "offshore processing centre" while their claims are considered but they admit they have no idea where this would be or how it would work.