‘Essential reading for anyone who wants to understand how things got so bad – and what to do about it.’Daniel Trilling, author of If We Tolerate This: How the British Establishment Made the Far Right Respectable‘Compellingly written and meticulously researched, Taking back control is a vital resource for understanding how increasingly cruel and punitive asylum policies have been a central factor in making far-right politics mainstream in the UK. Politically astute as ever, Darling proposes both urgent practical steps to support the right to asylum and deeper investments in social solidarity to loosen the grip of a narrative of “control” on how mobility and migration are understood.’Ben Rogaly, author of Stories from a Migrant City: Living and Working Together in the Shadow of Brexit‘A refreshing and timely analysis of how performative cruelty and punitive populism have come to define the UK's approach to asylum. Darling deftly joins the dots between policies, politics and public discourse, illuminating patterns that we have seen but struggled to make sense of.’Professor Heaven Crawley, Coventry University‘Taking back control is an outstanding contribution to the study of asylum politics. Combining historical depth with acute political analysis, Jonathan Darling reveals how populist narratives have transformed migration governance and normalised hostility towards people seeking refuge. An essential read for anyone seeking to understand contemporary Britain.’Professor Nando Sigona, University of Birmingham