Yesterday the Independent published the sickening and heartbreaking
images of little Aylan Al-Kurdi, a boy from Syria who drowned along
with his brother when the dinghy in which they were being transported
sank off the coast of Turkey.  He wasn't much older than my own son,
and when I saw his pale skin and stiff arms, his face against the sand,
I cried because I knew that there but for the grace  of God go I and my
family, and my own son.

In Britain we tend to be geopolitically isolated from the African and
Middle Eastern migrant crisis that's engulfing Europe.  That doesn't mean
that we haven't a responsibility, as Europeans and as human beings, to
take action to remediate the horrible conditions that are driving so many
people to undertake such dangerous voyages.  These migrants are driven
more by political instability than by economic woes; they're coming not
only from war-torn Syria but also from other failing states such as
Somalia and Eritrea.  If Britain, working with the European Union and
the United Nations, can act to improve political conditions in these
countries then we can stem this tide of migration.  Few people actually
want to leave their homes and extended families; the vast majority would
prefer to remain in their home countries if they could safely do so.
Let's make it safe for them.

I hope that you'll (1) act to mitigate the conditions that
are driving this migration, (2) act to prevent loss of life amongst
those who, despite advice, undertake the voyage, and at the same time
(3) support Britain's intake of a reasonable and proportionate number
of legitimate asylum-seekers, in cooperation with other EU member states.