Nigel Farage has demanded Andy Burnham review grants given to illegal immigrants following a wave of protests in the South of England. The Reform UK leader's call comes after protests in Devon and Portsmouth over the arrival of asylum seekers led to masked men taking to the streets.
Balaclava-wearing men chased vans full of migrants in Portsmouth and clashed with police over the weekend after the arrival of a so-called 'Mega Dingy'. A video posted online carried the caption: "In pursuit of migrant coaches from Portsmouth NOW!! We are heading towards DOVER."
Protests and arrests
It was reported that around 500 people had joined protests in the area, with some dressed in black costumes, following a similar protest in Dover on Saturday. The protests follow a large boat of migrants being intercepted between the Isle of Wight and Portsmouth over the weekend.
They also come as part of a change of tactics employed by people smugglers, who have changed the routes they use to move migrants.
Farage's demand
Now Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform UK, has called for a review of all asylum grants following the protests. Government data shows some 42,000 people were granted refugee protection in the first half of this year alone.
Recent reports in the Times newspaper suggested that only one in every one hundred such claims were genuine, according to a whistleblower.
Reform UK Leader Nigel Farage MP said: "We know that most of those landing on our shores are not genuine asylum seekers. They are military aged men with no identification and no right to be in this country. Yet, our weak system continues to accept tens of thousands of bogus asylum claims every year.
"Just on Sunday, 625 illegal migrants arrived on the UK’s south coast. No doubt they will be housed at the taxpayer’s expense in communities across this country. These grants must be reviewed immediately."
Protester background
Speaking earlier today, the Reform UK shadow home secretary Zia Yusuf was interrupted by the far-right activist Danny Thomas as he spoke to the media. Mr Thomas is a convicted attempted kidnapper and former soldier who helped organise the protests under the banner of the "Patriot Platform".
It was launched in June to "reclaim our borders, restore order and send a clear message: Britain belongs to the British". He has previously expressed long-standing support for Tommy Robinson. Mr Thomas was jailed in 2016 for attempting to kidnap a man in Hampshire.
A government spokesman previously condemned the "intimidating and thuggish behaviour". "The right to peaceful protest is fundamental to our democracy, but it must never cross a line into disorder," he said. "We thank the emergency services who are working to safely manage this situation."
