Reform UK councillors have vowed to oppose attempts to use the Isle of Wight for asylum accommodation after comments that all parts of the country should ‘play their part’ in the dispersal of refugees and asylum seekers.
The comments were made by Prime Minister Andy Burnham during an appearance on GB News earlier this week, prompting a response from Reform UK’s group on the Isle of Wight Council.
Mr Burnham said:
“I do have to say that we cannot have a situation where it’s only the poorest communities in the country that receive all of the dispersal of refugees and asylum seekers.
“I do believe all parts of the country need to work… to play their part. It’s a challenging issue. We’re working at it. We understand people’s concerns.”
In response, Councillor James Whelan, Central Rural representative and Reform UK Group Leader on the Isle of Wight Council, said his group would oppose attempts to use the Island as another location for asylum accommodation.
He argued that the Isle of Wight already faces significant pressure on housing, healthcare, social care and other public services, as well as what he described as an acute housing shortage.
No specific proposal to accommodate asylum seekers on the Isle of Wight was detailed in the comments provided.
Taking to social media earlier this week, Cllr Whelan, has said:
“The newly installed Labour Prime Minister appears to believe that because some areas have carried an unacceptable burden from asylum accommodation, places such as the Isle of Wight should now be expected to take their share. I fundamentally disagree.
“We should be asking why people who enter this country illegally are able to remain here for months or years at taxpayers’ expense in the first place. The priority should be to secure our borders, process claims rapidly and remove those who have no legal right to remain, not continually search for more communities in which to accommodate them.
“The Isle of Wight already faces severe pressures on housing, healthcare, social care and other public services. We have an acute housing shortage and an Island infrastructure that cannot simply absorb every additional demand imposed upon it from Whitehall.
“This is precisely where Reform UK takes a different view: stop managing illegal immigration and start stopping it.
“Genuine refugees should be treated with compassion and their claims dealt with quickly. But compassion cannot mean having no control over our borders, and it cannot mean expecting local communities to indefinitely absorb the consequences of multiple national government failures.
“At this time all can do is thank God for the Solent, the moat that protects us from this disastrous Labour Government!
“My position and the Reform UK Isle of Wight Group is clear: We would oppose attempts to use the Isle of Wight as another location for accommodating the consequences of uncontrolled illegal migration.
“The Government should secure the border and remove those with no right to remain, rather than simply moving the problem from one community to another.”
Every party should understand and reject any attempt to do this. There are factions on the island that are ready to stand up to protect our communities mothers, wives and daughters of any anti island life, anti-sococial behaviour that may come of this. We are not blind to issues that have occurred in big cities, towns and villages across the country. Our beautiful island is a haven that has been enjoyed by people across all classes since 1900 and before. We as a family community will reject and stand at the ports to stop this. If Red Funnel (Njord) Wight Link or any other attempt to facilitate this, they will be faced with the wrath of true islanders.
I don’t know, there is an old prison going to rot the the Ministry of Justice seems loathe to dispose of…
well said guard our Beaches
This is exactly why we are 100% expecting Reform UK to commit to opposing any and all illegal migrants. No-one wants them. No-one voted to cater for them. This is a take-over of the West by the 3rd world and Islam. We must unite and fight for our country as our Grandparents did. In 1939-1945. It’s that simple.
“We must unite and fight (to prevent this take-over of the West by the 3rd world and Islam) as our Grandparents did. In 1939-1945”
perhaps you ought to revisit your history lessons…..
if you do, .. you’d find that In 1939-1945 they were fighting a regime, not unlike what farage and his cronies want to turn the UK into….
Why shouldn’t the Isle of Wight take their share
after all Isle of Wight is in the United Kingdom
the rest of the country don’t have a say and have to
take them.
Haven’t you noticed that the majority coming over in boats are men. They are coming from war torn countries so many could be trained ex soldiers and terrorists, and pretty soon if enough come over, we English and white UK born will be in the minority. Stop them now.
Totally agree with Reform why does our Government just sit back & allow all this it’s going to break our Country at some point with the bloody strain of it all !
Move genuine refugees to the island then
every little helps.
oppose it?the Deform party cannot even put in place a simple no BBQ of the disposable sort to be used in place even tho 99.9%of Islanders want it!!and let’s not forget Farage(what bribe I accepted)?oh that’s in my Swiss bank account now wants to remove pup payments from families of disabled children/adults….the less well off in society anyway…”I’m alright jack pull up the anchor Farage”the man who thinks foxhunting is “British sport”only if your a Red coated fat arsed psychopath Farage
..jog on and take all your racist homophobic chants with you or better still find you an Island(uninhabited)where you can talk rollox with The Tango King(Trump(and the mab Russian (Putin),hopefully using up all the oxygen on The Island quickly,the world would be a safer place for our Children ,three useless sacks of water and blood matter sorry excuses for human beings will be removed and the planet can take a deep breaths…can you tell I am.nit a fan?good.
I am sure Burnham would bounce some illegals into the Jersey Camp at Porchfield if he wanted too, the Liebour government have kicked out cadets before to house illegals, so we won’t be different on the Island. But good that Reform UK are starting the fight back BEFORE it happens.
Whelan says:”We should be asking why people who enter this country illegally are able to remain here for months or years at taxpayers’ expense in the first place”.
Most people are asking that, with emphasis on the word “ILLEGAL“, for they ARE illegal.
Genuine asylum refugees must seek asylum in the FIRST SAFE country they reach.
We cannot blame these boat people for trying to get to the Disunited Kingdom, where they are given housing, food, clothing, any NHS treatment they desire, mobile phones courtesy of Vodafone and the traitorous “Charity” Care for Calais and worst of all access to young women and children.
Unfortunately, this Liebore government, just like the putrid Conservatives before them, see this issue of illegal immigration as a tool to divide the country, so that they can rule the country as they please.
It will be interesting to hear what the likes of Joe Robertson and Ed Blake have to say (if anything) about the Island “Getting it’s fair share”.
We already know what the likes of “wightlink”, “sunshine” and other virtue signalling fifth columnists have to say, but they are in such a minority now that their rancid insults of “racist” – “xenophobe” – “nazi” have lost all meaning.
Brexit voters should be made to give up their back gardens to house asylum seekers now.
This is their mess. Let them own it
Well said, we have insufficient infrastructure on the Isle of Wight for what we have at present let alone any additional illegal immigrants especially .
We have an acute shortage of Drs, Dentists, Nurses, our 1Hospital cannot cope properly.
As has been stated we cannot house everyone that we have here living on the Island at Present.
Time to mobilise everybody. Bring the island to a standstill.
Here Here Well said we don’t want any asylum seekers on the island as the infrastructure cannot support them. Send them all back to where they come from especially the ones from illegal boats.
We do not need asylum seekers here!! We need to keep women and children safe
Don’t you dare bring this filth over here they are NOT asylum seekers..the great scam con they are illegal grunts plane and simple..
do you actually know that from first-hand experience?
or did you just hear it on that Dubai ‘Entertainment Channel’ GB News ?