Protest in Portsmouth after boat carrying 140 migrants arrives
In Portsmouth, southern United Kingdom, about 300 people protested after a boat carrying 140 migrants across the English Channel arrived at the coast. The vessel departed from the Bay of the Seine in France and, according to The National, was at sea for around 10 hours.
Landing near Portsmouth
The boat set off from the Bay of the Seine, around 273 kilometres from Calais, the area from which such vessels usually depart. French rescue boats escorted it for about 10 hours. At midday on Sunday, when the vessel entered British waters, it was met by the coastguard and rescue boats near the Isle of Wight.
Migrants were brought ashore near Portsmouth rather than to the port of Dover, where people crossing the Channel in small boats usually arrive. The Portsmouth protest was organised through Patriotic Platform, an organisation founded by far-right activist Daniel Thomas, also known as Danny Tommo. He is an associate of anti-Islam far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon.
Police action and government response
Protest participants said they wanted to prevent migrants from being transported to the processing centre in Manston, Kent. The day before, in Dover, a group of protesters dressed in black and wearing masks blocked roads while chanting “stop the boats”. Kent Police described that action as spontaneous.
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Hampshire Police introduced a dispersal order until Monday evening. Officers said they were working in the area to prevent disorder, and that refusing to comply with a police requirement could lead to arrest.
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Emma Reynolds condemned the protesters’ behaviour, calling it thuggish and intimidating, and said police had brought the situation under control.
The Labour government says the number of small-boat arrivals has fallen by about 40% compared with the same period last year. A Home Office spokesperson said that joint action since the election had prevented more than 48,000 attempts to cross the Channel and seized 1,100 boats and engines. At the same time, according to the publication, smugglers have begun placing more people on vessels: in one case, a boat carried 230 migrants.
