Multi-millionaire Jim Ratcliffe’s ramblings are risible and are being reinforced by Reform lapdogs content to divide our communities on fake news and grievance, says STUC and Herald columnist Roz Foyer.

"You can't have an economy with nine million people on benefits and huge levels of immigrants coming in. I mean, the UK has been colonised. It's costing too much money. The UK has been colonised by immigrants, really, hasn't it? I mean, the population of the UK was 58 million in 2020, now it's 70 million. That's 12 million people."

Ratcliffe subsequently said he was sorry if his choice of language “has offended some people in the UK and Europe” but went on to stress that it was important to raise the issue of well-managed immigration and maintain an open debate.

Due to the way our society functions under the guise of rampant capitalism, we’re conditioned to believe that cream rises to the top. That those who have wealth, power and influence do so because of advantages – economic, social, educational – over the majority of the population; that the ruling classes rule because they’ve gained the right to do so through their dazzling intellect and acumen when compared to the ordinary working woman or man.

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Jim Ratcliffe seems to offer us some hope that is indeed not the case.

Let’s break down his inaccuracies. 

Nine million people aren’t on benefits. Figures from the Department of Work and........

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