To think most peoole are racist and scared of " other%."

[malificent7]

Judging by the conversations I overheard about the election today. It was all " stop the boats" and the uk is too attractive a place to live coz benefits 😂"
No wonder Farage is so poular and La Penn is gauning traction in France.

It's pointless telking oeoplat immigrants have a great work ethic generally and that the UK should be an attractive pkace to live and that the UK raped and colonised the world etc.

People go on about letting illegal migrants work - most hardly speak English, what on earth jobs are they going to do- never mind where they are going to live - can someone tell me where these young men on small boats without passports or cv are going to work - how many in the last 5 years around 130,000 where are they and how are they contributing or not - anybody

There is so much misinformation on here. Firstly, those coming in boats previously hid in lorries. This is not a new issue and it has always happened, it has just become more dangerous. Some asylum seekers will choose to come to the UK rather than stay in France or Germany because they have a family connection or they speak English. But many others will stay in mainland Europe. A functioning asylum system can process claims quickly and return those whose claims do not meet the required standard. This is what should happen but we don’t have a functioning system.

Secondly, the number of people arriving in small boats is absolutely dwarved by the number of immigrants arriving on legal visas, for example from Hong Kong.

Thirdly, many people are conflating the small boats issue with the Gaza issue, as in the concern that groups within the UK do not ‘share British values’. This may be a valid concern but it relates to long established communities, not people arriving on small boats.

Massive oversimplification and scapegoating by Farage which is what he did for Brexit. Whenever we feel poorer we blame immigrants. Stopping the small boats won’t touch the sides of reducing immigration..

Secondly, the number of people arriving in small boats is absolutely dwarved by the number of immigrants arriving on legal visas, for example from Hong Kong.

There were many nurses from Hong Kong on the ward when my mum was dying in hospital. They were superb. Kind, friendly, amazing skills and perfect English.

I have no issue with that.

Where are these illegals who come on small boats going to work? What skills can they offer. You can't just arrive in another country with no skills and no papers just because you want to.
**

Secondly, the number of people arriving in small boats is absolutely dwarved by the number of immigrants arriving on legal visas, for example from Hong Kong

People from HK are educated, work, are familiar with western practises and values, speak English, and are here legally. They’re ready to work and contribute immediately.

A world away from uneducated, illiterate young men, some of whom need to be reminded not to attack women, arriving on boats. What are they adding to UK society?

Yes but equally you can come here legally from Hong Kong without skills or language or work. We should have a serious conversation about immigration, but it is complex and nuanced. There is no simple solution and no one group of immigrants is ‘to blame’

But that is how immigration normally works: countries with ties are the first to offer asylum/visas. It’s not a equal opportunities thing. Ukraine is in Europe. They are reasonably close neighbours and it makes sense that we’d want to help. The link to Hong Kong is even stronger for obvious reasons. Similarly in the past we had immigration schemes for people from commonwealth countries. It’s stupid to suggest we should be offering equal access to every single country rather than the ones that are proximate or historically linked.

Real world example:

I was recently in a Y6 class so 10/11 years olds. 20% couldn’t access the curriculum due to language. 2 have zero English, the others varying levels but still very much English as an additional language. The children are from a variety of immigration backgrounds.

That is one practical example of something that needs addressing for successful immigration policies.

Quick fire quiz round:

How much extra funding do you think the school gets?
How much does this change school targets?
How much pressure does this add to ALL children and the teacher?

A test of intelligence is apparently holding opposing views at the same time: so imagine there is a legitimate conversation to be had about immigration and engaging critical thinking skills without being so lazy to label people racist.

“Scroungers”

Is Mrs Farage is a mumsnetter?

Yep .No problem with migrants if they are legal and have skills or a work ethic .

Also the comment re. ‘small boats is all the same as it was just lorries before’.

Wrong.

People smuggling has evolved to big business and run like a revenue maximising machine. It turns over enough to be listed on the stock market. There’s marketing, sales, logistics, finance people etc. If only they all got proper jobs.

‘Marketing’ encourage the UK as a destination for a range of reasons, not least they can charge more to get someone here. It’s the ultimate upsell revenue generator.

There are many desperate people. Some don’t need to make that crossing and are being encouraged to do so for money.

Concerned OP doesn't think thats a problem.

Yes agree with this. As a writer on the topic said on radio it’s misleading to call them ‘people smugglers’ even

It gives the impression they are lightweight and easy to stop

Trafficking networks is more apt and they are three layers deep

They are multi billion £ euro etc networks with marketing, funding, recruitment etc

Yes, stop the boats is a racist trope
You are not imagining it

Illegal immigrants are a TINY issue.

It only feels big because the Tories (and ofc Reform) want you to think it is.

*Also the UK has taken in around 175000 Ukrainian refugees. Compared to the approx 30,000 people that came by boat in 2023. And we’ve also given refuge to about 120,000 people from Hong Kong.

But Farage and the Daily Mail would have you believe it’s the ‘boats’ that are the problem. Because it does feed into the idea that some people are more worthy of help than others.*

quoting an excellent post by @summershere99 .

They might be a tiny issue for you but they aren’t for some of the population. As I said my sons nursery is literally 500m from a thousand illegal immigrants being temporarily housed.

And it might be 30,000 a year. But they aren’t processing them! There’s people in there for years. They aren’t happy about it either. I saw a video of one poor woman who thought the EDL nut jobs that came to expose the place had come to save her and she was trying to get her message out.

It’s madness. I have no idea what the tories have been doing

Is this not different depending on where you are ? London is going to be different to ...

Absolutely not my experience of people BUT there are a decent amount of people who are and they're, unfortunately, feeling rather emboldened of late!

Hopefully they'll crawl back under their rocks soon and take that cunt Farage with them.

yes the boat crossings may be bigger business however the movement of people is the same as when it was lorries. These are mostly male due the to dangerous nature of the journey they have to make. The way they arrive doesn’t make them uneducated/ amoral or unworthy. It’s just the option that was available to them. However WHEN they arrive we have the right to test their claim and then deport them. I am in favour of stopping the small boat crossings however tnis won’t materially change your community or improve your life. Immigration is so complex. Farage knows this but he is a liar and an opportunist.

What I'm saying is that the bulk of our immigration comes from legal routes, not illegal ones.

The reason net migration is high (or too high, if you believe that it is) is because of the legal routes into the UK - immigration boomed after Brexit, mainly because of the 2 countries mentioned in my previous post.

But almost every time immigration is mentioned people start talking about 'the boats' as if this is the reason for all the issues within the UK (and because almost every single person who crosses by boat is black or brown, yes it does begin to look like racism).

People should be allowed to claim asylum. And those claims should be dealt with as quickly as possible. But they're not. And so asylum seekers end up in hotels or temporary housing entirely dependent on the state, sometimes for years, and this is when people start seeing them as freeloaders.

The boats are a very visible issue and obviously tap into people’s sense of fairness. There is also the humanitarian and criminal aspect, so you can see why it’s a huge thing. Most people I know are cross about immigration in general though: tories said they would reduce immigration to tens of thousands so obviously people feel they’ve been let down.

If trafficking goes up would you be ok or is there a point where it feels uncomfortable to you?

We can process quickly but that means higher profits for traffickers as it becomes an easier sell to that country

Spellcheck would add to your persuasiveness, OP

@EasternStandard its not trafficking because it is done with consent of those being moved. If we become able to process those claims quickly this will not be an incentive for those involved in the trade - as you can return those whose claims are not legimitate. Those claims that are considered legitimate then those people are on an equal footing with refugees from Ukraine or wherever, and should be working and contributing as soon as they have their papers. Most want to do so - they are not intrinsically different in character or motivation to those arriving by legal means. It is actually the current situation which suits the gangs better - where people’s claims are not processed for years on end and in some cases they are able to disappear completely.

Immigration is a complex issue because it is multifaceted and there are two sides to the argument. And it intersects with wealth and class as, for wealthy people, immigration is almost 100% beneficial whereas it is much more of a mixed blessing for the poorer and working class.

Societies definitely benefit from immigration, especially aging ones. Japan is a big example of a society that has suffered due to lack of immigration. The mixing of cultures is positive and most immigrants are ambitious and hard working.

OTOH, immigrants take time to fully assimilate (assuming they want to in the first place) and infrastructure takes time to be built up to support an increasing population. So you can only absorb a certain amount every year. Who they are matters too. We need immigrants who want to assimilate, not impose their own culture or live in a bubble and they need to want to contribute to society and be here long term.

And immigrants shouldn’t be an excuse to keep down wages (think fruit pickers).

Accusations of racism vs ‘kumbaya, let’s embrace everyone’ doesn’t substitute for a proper discussion and both main parties are shameful in this regard.

The problem with the British is that they colonised half the world, tried to make everyone ‘British’ and are now pissed off that the people followed them home…