Home Secretary Suella Braverman has visited the Western Jet Foil in Dover and Manston asylum sites in today and confirmed steps being taken to immediately improve the situation on the ground.
These include bolstering the 24/7 medical facilities already on-site, extra bedding and improved catering facilities, as well as providing more activities to support migrant welfare, including for children
She also thanked staff for their continued hard work.
At Manston, she saw the efforts underway to ease pressures on-site and process individuals into alternative accommodation, alongside the immediate support being provided, particularly to vulnerable people.
More than 1,000 people have been moved off-site within the last five days, helping to reduce numbers and put Manston onto a more sustainable footing.
The Home Secretary and operational colleagues agreed that the vital work to safeguard individuals and provide alternative accommodation and support as quickly as possible remains their priority, making sure that people are treated with dignity, care and compassion throughout the process.
In Dover, the Home Secretary observed the expert techniques used by operational teams to intercept, identify and process those arriving via small boats.
She spoke with Border Force officers, military, and other personnel on the ground and thanked them for their dedicated work, under difficult circumstances, to protect UK borders and save lives. The Home Secretary also reiterated her gratitude and thoughts to all those affected by the petrol bombing incident on Sunday.
The Home Secretary said: “I have met with our expert teams who work tirelessly to save lives and protect the UK’s borders. I wanted to see first-hand how we’re working to reduce the number of people in Manston, support people there, and thank staff for all their efforts.
“I am incredibly proud of the skill and dedication shown to tackle this challenging situation here on a daily basis.
“This is a complex and difficult situation, which we need to tackle on all fronts and look at innovative solutions. To break the business model of the people smugglers, we need to ensure that the illegal migration route across the Channel is ultimately rendered unviable.”
The centre had reached some 4000 people being held despite only having capacity for up to 1,600, partly due to 1,458 people detected making small boat Channel crossings over the weekend and a petrol bomb attack at the Dover migration site meaning some 700 people had to be moved immediately to Manston.
The system has also been hampered by huge backlogs in the Home Office processing asylum claims. Other issues raised this month include reported cases of diphtheria – said to be 4 in a recent Home Affairs Committee hearing – scabies and norovirus.
Why done we give them a choice of cars they can use ,and free bus pass, what about day trips, it’s a joke they are treated better here as soon as they land in the UK, when in France they didn’t get anything that’s why they head for the UK.
One of the person’s is a convicted murderer ,with firearm convictions,and an 18 year jail sentence,this is why checks are needed,before the release into general society,he should be deported ,genuine people should be granted a certain status ,not the likes of him
Where are you getting this information Ray?
Kent on line ,if you want to check
Listened to the Kent Online podcast. It mentioned the person you referenced, but also talked about women (some pregnant) and children sleeping on cardboard and the lack of safeguarding.
Bet it was much safer and more comfortable in a Calais migrant camp.
Do we get 24/7 medical care in Thanet? Only if you traipse over to QEQM and take your luck with the drunks late at night. As for actually SEEING a doctor………. well, dream on.
I know someone who works there, they get nice meals, they have staff who clean their toilets and rooms, they seem to forget that they crossed our shores ILLEGALLY! France washed their hands and now we have them here in the UK, I understand they’re going to be moved to hostels and hotels?? What about our homeless who could do with those facilities for Christmas? These people don’t sleep on the floor, they have tent within the tent with beds, they’re are illegal what more do they want? One protester mentioned it was like a prison camp!!! Obviously that guy hasn’t seen one, only in films. I wish those activists stop spreading lies and speak to someone who really works there, these immigrants are very well fed and warm and who is paying for all that? We the Tax payer.
Why do you begrudge people decent food? Imagine if you lived in Afghanistan, or Syria – wouldn’t you want somewhere safe? We the tax payer are also paying for people who arrived from Ukraine. But they weren’t forced to sleep in tents. Weird hun?
I don’t think people from the Ukraine are Huns?
Because they are victims of war.These are illegal migrants who are invading our shores and expecting to fed and accommodated.As soon as they are here,they are moaning about their situation.I presume in was 5 star luxury in Calais.
They are dumped on us and resources have to be allocated ,to look after them.They should not even be here.Many are economic migrants.
Afghanistan and Syria, Iran and Iraq are safe are they? People arriving in small boats are no more invaders than those coming from Ukraine, but you seem to have fallen for the propaganda. Why do Afghan children matter less to you?
No, but France, Germany and Italy are.
It’s so terrible in there that a couple of Afghan men were trying to get back inside last night (though how these men “stranded” in London managed to get back to Manston in time for the protest hasn’t been explained!).
The reality is that whatever they told these immigrants they won’t find a better life here! We are struggling with jobs, cost of living, accommodation and the list goes on… what a mess! In the meantime our taxes goes to pay for their accommodation, meals and heating, sorted then!!!
I’m done with this Conservative party, they lost the plot. Send them back to France!
Lucy, the conservatives agree with the vast majority of the British public and want the illegal immigrants sent home, the reality is that it’s the far left who campaign for them to stay. Just look at the protest last night supporting the illegal immigrants organised by the Thanet left groups and the Labour Party. Every time the conservatives come up with a way of sending illegal immigrants home it’s the Labour Party that opposes them. It’s also left wing organised lawyers that holding up asylum claims in the courts.
I too won’t vote Conservative if they don’t sort this out ASAP (though I’m not sure who I’d vote for instead!). Now, if they reopen the airport and start giving away one-way tickets to Rwanda, I might change my mind…
And that, folks is the correct way to attack the establishment: from the right. Well said Lucy!
The vast majority of the British public are sick of the constant influx of illegal immigrants and want them sent home. The far left groups who held a rally yesterday outside Manston supporting the illegal immigrants certainly don’t speak for the majority of us and are actually turning the public against genuine asylum seekers.
Our health service is at breaking point, our housing stock is filled to capacity, Our welfare state is creaking and our schools are over subscribed . Enough is enough. Illegal immigrants need to be sent home.
Indeed, the majority are young people, some bring children because there’s where our humanity sentiments lie, first thing they show are those poor kids who are extremely stressed as they don’t know what’s going on!! As you said ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!
Thank you Kathy for letting the public express their thoughts in this important issue to us.
Not sure why you link the health service breaking and having poor housing stock to immigration. This is a far right stance.
Don’t think its the preserve of the far left to support these immigrants either. More it’s the far right who want to “send them back” and demonise (invaders?) them.
All those unhappy with migrants seem to think that if they got nothing then homeless would be looked after, see a DR quickly etc. I have bad news for you, no migrants & it would stay the same.
Closing down for the evening so comments now shut until tomorrow
Frankie, you yourself demonise and vilify anyone who has has an opinion different to your own on the subject of illegal immigration. I am far from being a far right supporter.
I have already said that I have compassion for legal asylum seekers and if they are genuinely fleeing persecution they should be entitled to apply for refugee status but the vast majority are not legal, they have entered our country illegally after travelling through numerous safe countries and are economic migrants. These illegal economic migrants are burning their passports and concealing their identi because they come from safe countries, they are not fleeing persecution and their lives are not in danger.
The illegal migrants and their left voting supporters are the ones turning the country against the genuine asylum seekers.
64% of asylum decisions in the year to sept 2021 were positive – ie applicants were given asylum or another firm of protection. That was just over 13,000 people. About half of those refused were successful at appeal. So the vast majority of asylum applicants are genuine.
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-year-ending-september-2021/how-many-people-do-we-grant-asylum-or-protection-to
The BBC has heard evidence that Albanian drug gangs are using the migrant camps of northern France as a recruitment ground, offering to pay the passage of those prepared to work in the UK drugs industry on arrival.
Albanians account for around a third of the almost 40,000 people who have arrived in small boats so far this year, according to UK government figures.
Indeed (and no-one can accuse the BBC of right-wing propaganda!).
Not just invaders, but invading criminals.
Other criminals are available even in lawful Thanet,in fact criminality is never affected by a recession.
After lots of nagging Kathy Bailes has given way to let Thanet migration watch have it’s way.
Perhaps you should all consider how you might feel if Britain faced catastrophe and you were shaken from your complacent lives and needed help from strangers.
If no migrants arrived on our shores,how brilliantly would our elected representatives improve your angry little lives? I think you know the answer.
God I love seeing all the tiny minded gammon racists loosing their minds over stories like after voting in an utterly hopeless tory scum government to “gEt BreXiT dun”.
Yet you’re all still more concerned with asylum seekers (and seeking asylum isn’t illegal despite what the daily heil tells you) than you are with people like Rees-Mogg and others avoiding billions in tax by having offshore accounts.
So fun to see you all angry.
Actually, I’m happy that all this is finally making national news. Very happy indeed. How about you, fat bearded bloke?
need to get these people out of government. They have no conception of the Anglo-Saxon sense of justice and fair-play.
It’ll odd how the reports on the conditions at manston and the highest levels of overcrowding , conveniently ignore the fact that it largely occurred after the rather odd firebombing event at dover. Which resulted in the migrants there being transferred to Manston at short notice.
Then we had the left leaning harping on about two alledged sexual assaults of minors in a london hotel, claiming the government hadn’t kept them safe, but conveniently glossing over the minor detail that the minors were with their families at the hotel. Quite where does state / family responsibility begin/end?
The dinghy route is now the easiest way into the country, the numbers are no different to what they have long been, it’s just that now it’s all very visible and those arriving don’t just melt away unrecorded. Which is why the country and its services are creaking at the seams, we’ve 2-3 million more people here than officially acknowledged. But our services are open to all with no questions asked , which is one of the greatest pull factors the country has, no id required.
As for the endless wittering about how long it takes to process migrants, if they actually turned up with some paperwork and real evidence of who they are and where they are from , they’d get through the sytem much faster. ( if you’re able to get here clurptching your mobile phone and new trianers, it shouldn’t be beyond realms of possibility to have retained your id papers or similar, even if its just a photo on your phone)That next to none have any documentation or verifiable back stories, really does indicate that many are economic migrants choosing to come here primarily purely for the better life we offer.
Bear in mind that each migrant that rocks up is going to cost us around a million each by the time they’ve been processed and permanently resettled, then there’ll be the applications to bring in suddenly rediscovered family members.
We can choose to accept all and sundry if we want, but with such decisions comes the acceptance that it spreads the nations resources ever thinner for all and as such improving the quality of life for a few reduces it for us all , only by a tiny bit , but in a country that clamours for ever more the direction of travel is the wrong way.
Agree with everything you say LC.
When will you realise it’s not about left or right.its about humanity empathy and decency.
There are many in all main stream parties who have both.
Old Rog may be a sad old duffer but he is not cruel.
The screech owl in Dover is so political and full of self righteousness that she leaves her humanity in her handbag.
The reason why Thanet is deprived is because the workforce lacks the skills and it is badly run.
The reason why the asylum system is in a pickle is because those setting policy are more concerned with blowing on a dog whistle than working out solutions.They do this because you always respond to the whistle,and vote a bunch of reprobates and nincompoops into office.
They won’t make your lives better because they can’t and they don’t care.
“They won’t make your lives better because they can’t and they don’t care.”
Words that could equally apply to the uninvited guests in dingies.
I have read on another site, that the Christchurch complex in Broadstairs, is going to be used for migrant accommodation.
Has anybody else heard this?
Have just read it on another thread of IoTN, that you cannot comment on.
I can’t quite believe it.
Expect at least one each of the Ramsgate and Minster hotels to be forced to do the same very soon. It’s happening all over the country.
Manston was very recently descibed as a zoo on BBC (Benders Broadcasting Communism) by one of its inmates. That lucky, ungrateful b@$t@r’d should feel fortunate he’s here on freebies, and not degrade our overgenerous country.