British Home Secretary Suella Braverman said the country is facing an “invasion” of asylum-seekers crossing the English Channel by boat. Braverman’s complaint comes amidst her attempts to push back against criticism of her repeated security breaches.
Speaking to parliament Monday, Braverman said that the immigration system in the country is “out of control.” Braverman’s remarks come amidst attempts to push back for allegedly failing to listen to legal advice on the prolonged detention of migrants at an asylum processing center in southern England. Braverman was reappointed to the position by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last week.
“Let’s stop pretending they are all refugees in distress, the whole country knows that is not true,” said Braverman, who also defended her position to keep thousands of people at a migrant center in Kent.
An inspection at the migration center in Kent was found to be “pretty wretched” by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, David Neal. The center’s purpose was to house around 1,500 migrants for less than 24 hours at a time but have since doubled in number, with one Afghan family saying that they have been staying at the center for 32 days.
During the debate, Braverman appeared to agree with one Conservative lawmaker that the migrants could return to France if they found that their accommodation in the United Kingdom was not good enough.
Braverman’s comments came a day after a man threw petrol bombs tied to fireworks at an immigration facility in Dover Sunday before killing himself. Braverman’s appointment also sparked controversy among members of the opposition party and the governing Conservative Party, who questioned her viability for the post.
Tommy Shepard, who is a member of the Scottish National Party, accused Braverman of “far-right and inflammatory rhetoric.” Kim Johnson of the opposition Labour Party said Braverman’s language only emboldens racists and extremists to attack vulnerable asylum-seekers.
The British government has been under pressure to address the deteriorating conditions of the migrant processing center. The defense ministry said 1,000 migrants arrived in the UK in small boats on Saturday alone. Conservative lawmaker Roger Gale told BBC Radio after visiting the center that the facility is “overwhelmed” and that the situation should not have been allowed to develop further.