Thread by @ameliagentleman

Eye-poppingly extraordinary defence of Theresa May's hostile environment policy from her ex-aide Nick Timothy, describing it as a "sensible policy", adding "I was never warned" that the wrong people could be targeted.

There were MANY warnings

politico.eu/newsletter/lon…

See this from @fionabawdon who warned that Windrush could happen with absolute clarity years before it did.
The Home Office read her report and declined to take any action
thejusticegap.com/windrush-gener…

But it wasn't just legal charities...
It was also Conservative ministers like Eric Pickles who said requiring landlords to conduct immigration checks on potential tenants was a bad idea, warning that “anyone foreign-looking” would face challenges
theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/a…

Everyone with expertise in this area warned about the potential for these policies to impact people they weren't designed to target from @JCWI_UK to @libertyhq

Senior civil servants were also making their concerns known but were ignored. @HackneyAbbott was repeatedly highlighting probably problems with the policies in parliament

But also the Home Office itself produced figures to suggest there were up to half a million people who might struggle to prove their right to reside and eligibility fpr public services

And the Home Office completed an official impact assessment which warned of the problems. See p 135 of the book I wrote on this which has AN ENTIRE CHAPTER setting out the warnings the government received

So for a full summary of the warnings, @NJ_Timothy

You can listen to it here
amazon.co.uk/Windrush-Betra…

Sadly sold out on Amazon but available here (discounted)
guardianbookshop.com/the-windrush-b…

It just feels really weird not to be more reflective about a policy which unleashed catastrophic consequences for 1000s of people who did nothing wrong. People died without managing to sort out their problems. Many remain in acute financial difficulty, waiting for compensation.