General Chat

When you look at the size of the UK and its population of around 67m and compare it with say France that has a similar size population but is 2.5 times the size, something has to give. With the best will in the world we cannot afford to continue allowing these people to illegally come into our country. They need to be deterred from making the treacherous journey across the channel.

Why is the UK so attractive?

The UK is so attractive because of the benefit system amongst other things, and many believe the streets are literally paved with gold still.
Free health care is big draw for some.

Ah right, Caroline.....I couldn't understand why asylum seekers/refugees would travel through so many 'safe' countries but we're still insistent on getting to the UK :-0

I think it may have dawned on the BBC that each unasked-for politically biased comment is one more step to losing income from the TV licence.

Belle is right.

Imagine this scenario.

We let our emotions override our common sense and allow millions more boat people to land on our shores and stay. They need housing, health care, schooling, water, energy, food. We could end up with those already on housing lists waiting even longer, energy resources being unable to cope resulting in switch-offs around the country, water shortages similarly, loss of arable land so more food imports and higher prices for all as well as firms closing periodically due to lack of energy resource with the resultant loss of income for their employees.

Taxes for all will rise and benefits for many will freeze or even come to a halt as government grapples with rises in health and educational need, for example. Every single penny, whether it be earned or obtained in benefits, will then be taxed - out of necessity.

If you’re a tv presenter on £1m+ it will not affect you as much as it will for those on, say, £20k. What it could mean for you, though, is that you may not be able to buy all of your children houses, new cars, high-cost private schooling and everything such as that, particularly if you have several children.

But, if your millions come from sources such as construction, energy, water and shares etc., the poor will pick up the tab as they will have to pay more from their income than they do now in order to eat, drink, have a roof over their heads etc - and this, just to keep millionaires and their children in the way they have become accustomed to.

Our nation’s biggest earner is the food industry so it will produce more income for shareholders as it imports more. Will it result in higher incomes for own food producers? Ask yourself if you’re head of one of the food companies would you pay local food producers more if you can ship in produce from overseas at a squeezed-down cost because producers in other countries need the income just as much as ours and they have more hectares of arable land so production costs are likely to be cheaper overall.

So, when you’re taking in someone from some nations, housing, feeding and generally sustaining them, those same nations are profiting from it - at the expense of our capable home-grown workforce and producers of almost everything.

It’s not beyond anyone’s ability to imagine that more crime will be committed as parents struggle to keep their families’ heads above water. It gathers pace … more crimes, more prisons, more construction, more money for shareholders … and so it rumbles on.

And we don't have enough GPS and dentists for the population as it is without keep adding to the problem. OK maybe, just maybe among the people coming here there may be doctors, nurses dentists but I don't think they will be among the boat immigrants. Nobody is saying don't take any immigrants at all. What we don't want are the boatloads of people landing on our shores and fleeing into the countryside unaccounted for. Besides all the rescue services that have to save them from drowning.

Maggie has the right idea when she says we should have border control where they are fleeing from to prevent the illegal boats and the people traffickers.

We do have border control in France - two that I can think of. We also pay towards the French policing the border too.

The problem is that those arriving in small boats deliberately dodge the control - and those who do so are probably aware that they would either never be granted entry into Britain anyway or choose not to ‘form an orderly queue’ and wait in safe France for whatever reason.

Once someone reaches a safe country it is difficult to comprehend why they cannot settle or even wait for asylum elsewhere unless they know of a reason why their application will be refused - and I think many of those young male Albanians will fall into that last category as they are economic migrants from a safe country.

Another question which I don't claim to have the answer to is so far how many people who have come across the channel illegally have gone on to commit a crime? I know from the press there have been some who are known criminals in their own countries. As JoyLouise says if they've nothing to hide and are genuine refugees why not stop in the first safe place and then look to move on to the UK or wherever?
Let us not forget I'm sure there's more coming over on boats than even the authorities know about, little boats can land on the south coast and not be detected if they're off the beaten track.

It is an absolute myth that our benefit system is the big attraction. It is pathetic compared with the Scandinavian countries and Germany. The main reasons they want to come is because they have relations already here or because they know English.

As for being a drain on our resources, they are mostly young and fit and likely to perform the jobs that we are having difficulty doing. Since they will be working if accepted the tax will not have to increase to support them as they will be paying their share.

Well many that are living in France(Calais) are in tents, sleeping rough but if they land on our shores, they will be given a roof over their heads and food to eat! We also have a NHS which is free here.

With waiting lists for housing, drs appointments and dental too, just where are we expected to house these immigrants?

Its hardly fair when there are people of this country sleeping rough or in temp accommodation. These centres where they wait to be processed have to be funded. These people need clothes, toiletries & food and they cant work until their applications have been processed and then what? Where will they go?

They wont have anything, no money etc just the clothes they wore when they travelled in a small boat.

Yes maybe some will be educated and become drs or nurses etc but where will they live? We do not have any spare council houses here and as quick as they build new ones, the people on a waiting list get given them.

Our lifeboat & coastguards are busy enough saving lives already so loads of boats coming across the channel will drain already stretched resources.

Yes why if they have travelled from say Albania do they not stop in the 1st safe country they come to? The UK is surely the last because after all we are an island.

I am not uncompassionate for people in genuine need and would help anyone if i could but the endless stream of illegal immigrants arriving on our shores in boats has to be stopped. The UK streets are not paved with gold!

Well said Florence I agree 100% with everything you have said

Whatever their reason for coming it's only fair that it be done the right way. There are procedures for a reason and to jump the queue is not acceptable. Otherwise you might as well ditch passport control at airports etc and just let everyone come and go as they please.
Florence agree with you 100%.

Albanians have no reason to come here - THEY are 'illegal' immigrants, or to be more precise, economic migrants - here to make more money than they can in their own money. Similar to the reasons the parents of Sunak, Braverman, .Patel, Kwarteng Zahawi and quite a few others came here.

It appears Sunak has made an 'agreement' with the Albanian Government, and the number of Albanians coming over here has reduced.

This is an interesting article:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/explainers-63473022

As for refugees, this makes it more understandable:
https://www.refugee-action.org.uk/about/facts-about-refugees/

I am afraid that I can’t see many (or indeed any) young male illegal-entry Albanians helping our economy.

Would they register for a NI number and pay income tax directly?

I do know from experience that if someone falls desperately ill, needing hospital care, that care will be given free of charge regardless of whether he is a British citizen or not. I have seen this happen to a non-citizen - without anyone or any other country being invoiced. When it was queried, the response was that first treatment is free. Could it be that the cost of filling out forms and the manpower needed to effect payment from another nation would cost more than the treatment given, with or without any reciprocal agreement in place? I do not know as I have never worked out the cost of short or lengthy treatment compared to the cost of raising an invoice to be sent overseas.

These young guys would only shell out if it was necessary to do so - for example, by buying food, thereby paying an indirect tax, buying petrol (indirect tax), buying a car (would they register it if they had no British driving licence or equivalent and, very likely, no insurance). I am aware that some may revert to stealing food, clothing etc but they would risk certain deportation if caught - which would then incur housing, feeding and policing costs for the time that deportation takes.

They may sleep multi to a room, taking a room - (no matter how rough it is, it is a roof over the head) - from our own citizens who may be desperate for accommodation.

Undoubtedly, they would become part of the black economy, keeping their heads low. Some may do the work that others refuse, but inevitably that will mean cash in hand, thereby involving no income tax and no employee contributions of any sort by the employer. Illegal activity by illegals ‘on the doors’ at clubs and pubs is unlikely to involve income tax either. One may ask what are their employers thinking of but they are not actually employed, they are just there - armed in some cases, I have been told.

We need to vet applications from refugees and immigrants - and, like the Australians - give swift passage to those whose occupations are needed here, eg doctors and nurses. Safe passage ought also to be given to those escaping tyranny in fear of their lives. Judging by the number of tents we see in France, many are patiently awaiting their turn so I am pleased that our government has begun to repatriate those small-boat, queue-jumping illegals even though many will still breach our porous border successfully. It is a step in the right direction as far as I am concerned.

Agree, Joy-Louise. Albanians have no med to come here, Others do.
What really annoys me, thought is the way all those trying to get here are labelled 'illegal immigrants', or 'invaders' by those who should know better!

Oh dear. GL will be back.

Bang goes the Beeb’s income from the TV licence I hope.

I liked the idea that there should be a refund of the licence money (not) because there was no MOD.
What about all those days when there is sport on every channel can’t the non sport lovers have a massive refund.

I think any who enter this country by small boat or in the back of a lorry are 'illegal' regardless of where they have come from! Those that are apprehended are, I feel, just the tip of the iceberg. I'd hate to think what the true numbers are that have made it to our shores and just dispersed. Those have no means of legitimate employment as they do not have any documentation and therefore will not pay taxes.

I have no problem with those who have gone through the legal process and are allowed to stay

I agree, Names. That TV licence money is better in my purse rather than Lineker’s back pocket,

I second that, Belle.

Lineker statement today was "....it simply doesn't compare to having to flee your home from persecution or war...."
How many people on the little boats are actually in that position? Does he not get the situation?

Don't forget that the media cut out some speech and put in what they want so it isn't always accurate.