Dartford Crossing protester, possible deportation

[WildAlphabet]

Essex radio did an interview with the partner of a protester who climbed the dartford bridge as part of Just Stop Oil.

The gist of it is he was surprised to get three years in prison, they expected a few months. The length of his sentence means he’s facing deportation, as a German national.

They did a phone in, and I was quite surprised that even the angry radio essex listeners they put on, who were massively against his actions, disagreed with deportation as additional punishment. Some wanted community service to make up for the loss they suffered, others name called, but they thought splitting a family was too much.

I was kind of intrigued how the mumsnet demographic would view it, often being quite rule-bound or conservative. Personally I disagree with the one year rule for deportation, particularly for non violent crimes. It’s out of sync with most of the world. I guess also as a second generation immigrant who could also potentially lose the right to stay here if wrongly convicted, it’s scary on a personal level. It’s played on my mind the last few days

Here’s an article https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-66756841.amp

It's appalling and very frightening. It's a non violent crime, obviously done because of the desperate need to get something done about the devastating consequences of climate change. The shockingly long sentence is clearly a message from the powerful to the rest of us that nothing can stop them doing what they want. Of course rapists have lower sentences: rape is also an exercise of power and destruction and there's psychological and psychoanalytical research into the connection between rape and climate destruction.

Well, he played a game of fuck and around and find out and now he's finding out the hard way 🙍

But yes, Mumsnet is very far to the right, politically, and you're unlikely to find much support for peaceful protestors here.

I'm the opposite of right wing.

You do the crime.....no sympathy.

Well put.

Lol - it’s not “hardline” to not want people committing crimes in the uk. Also what’s wrong with essex?

I am happy to have criminals deported as we have enough home grown ones of our own.

LMAO I find it quite left. Anti-private schools, anti-second homes, anti-landlords, people saying "read the room" ad infinitum if a poster has a problem that involves them having more than £5 in the bank, always turning things into some sort of social issue...

He wasn’t a peaceful protester.

It's bbc Essex not Essex radio.

I've found the opposite, very pro private schools, second homes, landlords, etc.. Perhaps it depends on which threads one reads!

It’s not just the crime with 2yr and 7mos sentence, it’s the fact he quit his job which would have invalidated his work visa. As he is of no fixed address, he likely doesn’t have the income to qualify for any other visa to stay.

People get deported all the time for simply failing to qualify to renew a work visa when their current one expires- no crime necessary. One case I remember was an Australian family that had been here for eight years. All four of them sent back to Australia.

Australia even has an age limit on work visas and there have been news articles of British citizens being deported for simply being in their 50s. Again, no crime committed.

So I don’t think it is unreasonable for this fellow to be deported back to Germany.

I find it very conservative/ right leaning personally. There’s a few acceptable circumstances, like being well educated, unlucky or disabled and bright and temporarily on benefits. I find the read the room thing just a control thing, to prevent dissenting views mainly. I mean- have you read the Ukraine threads 😂
Every Ukrainian is an economic migrant and chancer (not saying some aren’t… but read the threads- it’s extreme even by daily Mail standards)

Oh I like Essex, but politically it’s hardly the land of champagne socialists is it.

It sounds very peaceful indeed from the description in the link the OP provided.

It sounds as if the police didn't plan or provide for the consequences of their redirecting traffic very well and that had some distressing consequences, but the police are supposed to have contingency and back up for such situations rather than leave people unable to get to hospital.

I’d actually describe the callers as right wing decent family people. One had lost a lot of money in those few days, but actually didn’t support deporting people. He was angry, but came across as decent

Not for Germany. They deport you if your paperwork isn’t exactly right.
If we are “out of synch” it’s by being too soft compared to Germany.
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1418242/Brexit-news-latest-Germany-British-electricians-deported-eu-news-expat-news-spain

The leaders of Thurrock council for example have caused wildly greater economic harm to thousands, and more traffic problems. They bankrupted a whole area through negligence and mismanagement, his level of stupid decisions isn’t first league stuff in the area.

Not paying your taxes or having a residence permit is kinda going to get that result anywhere Tbf. It’s not exactly an oversight immigration wise?

Also, it’s another case that’s the result of the British voting for Brexit. The Germans didn’t actually vote for or vote in a political party that removed the rights of British people to live there. That was a British decision to give up the right to live and work in the EU. Had Britain not left the EU and voted to take away their own rights in Europe they’d be fine living there. It’s not a German plan is it

I was intrigued to know if mumsnet were more right wing/ hardline/ conservative than bbc Essex listeners

It's because he's a white European. I can guarantee if he'd been for instance Pakistani the responses would have been rather different.

Probably a factor in the phone in yes, but the calls to be fair were about the wider policy mostly rather than an exception for him. He wasn’t coming across as liked, more the policy was extreme

The Germans seem to be pretty intolerant of these particular protesters as well. He’ll need to watch it at home.

Equally most countries will deport you for committing a serious criminal offence as he did.

Are you alleging criminal conduct from the thurrock councilors? Even so, don’t they have to be British or Irish nationals to be eligible for election?

so basically irrelevant

Ok, so being here on a work visa as a musician and then quitting your job thereby invalidating your visa so you are now in the country illegally, you would agree that is also “not exactly an immigration oversight” too?