The mayor of Calais, France, has accused Britain of a ‘declaration of maritime war’ over its planned move to send in the Royal Navy to curb waves of illegal immigration to the United Kingdom from France across the English Channel.
“It’s a declaration of maritime war,” said Mayor Natacha Bouchart, according to The Daily Telegraph, before accusing the British of ‘giving themselves satisfied with lessons and by subjecting Kalasians to this situation for too long’.
BRITAIN BEGINS SERVICES ILLEGAL Immigrants return to France, Germany
“We in Calais no longer want to be permanent hostages holding the lectures of British leaders,” she said.
UK Home Secretary Priti Patel has reportedly proposed sending in the Royal Navy to stem the hundreds of migrants who have crossed the English Channel from northern France in small boats.
On Wednesday, Britain began returning to migrants from France and Germany who had been identified as already seeking asylum in one of those countries.
While the 14 sent back are only a small fraction of the 650 migrants who tried to reach British shores this month, a government source told the Times of London that it was the tip of the iceberg. ‘
The government has requested military assistance and the Royal Air Force patrolled the canal with a new aircraft designed for anti-submarine warfare, reported The Associated Press.
The British and French governments have been in talks to stop the crisis, and British Immigration Minister Chris Philp said on Tuesday that governments had “reaffirmed our unshakeable shared commitment” to ensure the route across the canal ” unviable. “
UK, FRANCE INSIDE PLAN TO STOP ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT BOATS ENGLISH CHANNEL
“We have been working on a joint operational plan, a revised and new operational plan, with the aim of completely cutting this route and we will work at a rapid pace in the coming days to make that plan a reality,” he said.
A group of people thought to be migrants will be brought to Dover, England on Wednesday, August 12, 2020, by Border Force officers. (Kirsty O’Connor / PA via AP)
Philp notes that Britain will no longer be bound by EU asylum restrictions such as the Dublin Order if it leaves the bloc at the end of the year.
Patel, a hardliner on illegal immigration, has reportedly indicated a tougher approach for France.
The Times reports that Patel told MPs that Britain would not give France money she had asked to patrol beaches until she agreed to take back more migrants who had crossed the canal.
Opposition Labor Shadow Home Secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds accused the government of lacking “compassion and competence”.
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“We must not militarize a humanitarian crisis,” he said.
The Times reported that Priti told MPs that she was working on a “fair borders” bill to stop people from recording the asylum process, and that she said the system “is being exploited by left-wing Labor advocates who are using us every day send legal letters to try to stop us from removing people from this country. “
According to her, she predicted that her plan would ‘send the left into meltdown’.
