A total of 83 migrants on two UK-bound small boats have been rescued in the Channel. The French coastguard said several small boats tried to cross the Channel today (Sunday January 29), with two getting into difficulty off the coast of Gravelines.
On Sunday morning, the coastguard said 54 people had been rescued from one boat and 29 from another. They were taken to the port of Calais, where they were met by emergency services, according to the translation of a statement from the Prefecture maritime de la Manche et de la mer du Nord.
One person, who was unwell, was given medical attention, the coastguard added. It comes after the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) said 26 migrants in a small boat crossed the Channel to reach the UK on Saturday. The total number of migrants to arrive in the UK after crossing the Channel so far this year is 991, according to MoD data.
The rescues came as leaked WhatsApp messages showed a Tory MP suggesting that any civil servants blocking Government efforts to stop small boat crossings may be guilty of “treason”. The message by Lee Anderson, MP for Ashfield, was among a number reported by Sky News and apparently leaked from the so-called Common Sense Group of Tory MPs.
Mr Anderson said the Government’s promised legislation on the issue would “not stop the crossings”, adding that the controversial plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda could happen “if we had the balls”.
After one MP suggested the legislation is coming to tackle the issue, MP for Dudley North Marco Longhi said: “I don’t want to shoot the messenger. But we’ve had legislation before. ECHR (European Convention on Human Rights) trumps everything and our own colleagues want to keep it even if it poses a security risk to UK people as we’ve just seen.
“We will be slaughtered at the locals and at the GE (general election).” Mr Anderson reportedly replied: “It’s like the band on the Titanic. Playing the same tune and ignoring the obvious.”
According to the leaked WhatsApps, Tom Hunt, who has been Ipswich’s MP since 2019, said: “All of the unelected civil servants who are attempting to block the democratically elected government should either be fired or named. If they want to engage in politics and be a political actor they should either leave their profession and stand for office or get the scrutiny that comes with it.”
“Going against the state is Treason. Surely,” Mr Anderson said. Mid Derbyshire MP Pauline Latham is quoted as saying: “I thought civil servants advise and ministers decide? Obviously no longer!”
Mr Sunak has faced strong pressure from some Tory backbenchers to crack down on illegal migration. Mr Anderson, who was elected in 2019 and represents the ‘red wall’ seat of Ashield in a former Labour heartland, has been among the most vocal of MPs on the issue.
In December, only a few weeks into Mr Sunak’s tenure, he used an article in the Mail on Sunday to issue a a veiled threat to quit the party if illegal immigration is not sufficiently tackled.
For stories from where you live, visit InYourArea.
