Whatever Happened to 'When in Rome'?

Britain’s new guide for asylum seekers raises an old question: Should newcomers adapt to their host country, or should the host country adapt to them?  

Brian C. Joondeph | August 31, 2026

When visiting a new place, one should follow local rules and customs. Hence the old axiom, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.”

Apparently, in modern Britain, that requires a nine-page government instruction manual.

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The U.K. Home Office recently published “Understanding Behaviours and Expectations in the UK: A Guide for Asylum Seekers.”

It begins by acknowledging the obvious:

We understand that coming to a new country can be difficult, and that laws and customs here may be different from your home country.Advertisement if (publir_show_ads) { googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.pubads().addEventListener("slotRenderEnded", function(event) { if (event.slot.getSlotElementId() == "div-hre-Americanthinker---New-3028") { googletag.display("div-hre-Americanthinker---New-3028"); } }); }); }

We understand that coming to a new country can be difficult, and that laws and customs here may be different from your home country.

Fair enough. Every country has its own laws and customs.

But the British government’s instructions go well beyond reminders to queue politely, drive on the left, or know when to say “cheers.”

The booklet explains that women in Britain can work and earn their own money, attend university, travel freely, choose whom to marry — or whether to marry at all — and make their own decisions about their lives.

It specifically tells asylum seekers that women do not need permission from a husband, father, brother, or any other man to engage in these activities.

Men are instructed not to control what women wear, where they go, whom they see, or the decisions they make.

Then things get more basic.

The booklet explains that migrants must not physically or verbally abuse their spouses or family members. It also explains that sexual contact requires consent, including within marriage, and that someone who is asleep, drunk, or unable to respond cannot consent.

It explicitly states that nonconsensual sex is rape.

It further explains that the legal age of consent in Britain is 16 and........

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