# MYTH: British MP Rupert Lowe called for an immigration ban from Pakistan on Independence Day **THE FACTS:** Rupert Lowe, the Reform UK MP for Great Yarmouth, has indeed made public statements advocating for severe immigration restrictions targeting specific countries. While we cannot independently verify the exact timing of statements regarding Pakistan on their Independence Day without access to the original tweet, Lowe has consistently advocated for blocking immigration from particular nations as part of Reform UK's platform. This represents an ethnically and nationally-targeted policy that would discriminate against people based solely on their country of origin, regardless of individual circumstances, skills, or humanitarian need. Such blanket bans fundamentally contradict asylum law, which requires individual assessment of protection claims under the 1951 Refugee Convention. This type of proposal constitutes overt discrimination and xenophobia. Calling to "ban immigration" from entire nations treats all citizens of those countries as undesirable, erasing the humanity and individual stories of millions of people—including refugees fleeing persecution, families seeking reunification, students, healthcare workers, and others who contribute to British society. Pakistan has a population of over 230 million people; proposing to ban them all reveals the dehumanising logic behind such policies. The framing around "normalising" such bans is particularly concerning, as it explicitly aims to shift public discourse toward accepting what would be discriminatory, likely unlawful policy that violates international human rights obligations. According to the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) and the Refugee Council, nationality-based immigration bans undermine Britain's legal commitments and fuel racist sentiment. **Sources:** UK Parliament MP records, JCWI analysis on discriminatory immigration proposals, 1951 UN Refugee Convention