At a small cultural event near Dover, on England's south coast, I was listening to the music when a friend interrupted my thoughts. "Eighty migrants arrived today," he said of the beach where he lived. "The most I've seen so far."
According to British Border Force figures, a record 1,185 migrants crossed from France to England that day, most landing in Kent. The weather was fine, the sea calm, although the water temperature is dropping as winter approaches. At least three migrants were suspected lost at sea that day.
Even in calm weather, the crossing is extremely hazardous, but the official figures are stunning. More than 23,000 migrants have made the crossing from France to England by boat so far this year. That is almost three times the figure of 8,404 migrants for all of 2020. Put simply, British government policy has failed and will continue to fail until it is re-thought.
The policy, trumpeted as taking a hard line by Home Secretary Priti Patel, includes threats to "push back" migrant boats in some way, and to pay France to keep migrants on their shores. Pushing back boats is dangerous and could result in migrants dying at sea. The UK has earmarked millions of pounds to pay France, but policing around 200 kilometres of French coast has proved extremely difficult. British government sources complain that the French authorities are not up to the job.
This row is a mirror image of Brexit, in which the Boris Johnson government also blames others instead of proceeding calmly and rationally to examine why Britain’s own policies have failed.
Our coverage of the migrant crisis
To be sure, on migration, the UK is far from alone in its obvious difficulties. Events at the other ends of Europe, on the Poland-Belarus border, in the Mediterranean, or in North America, show that co-operation between governments on migration is essential. That depends on goodwill rather than blaming neighbours.
We should also be clearer on definitions. Despite Ms Patel and others speaking of "illegal migrants" – implying that the root causes are economic – a whopping 98 per cent of those who arrived in the UK in 2020 claimed asylum, according to the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford. They say they are escaping conflict or repression of some kind. The number of UK asylum applications so far in 2021 is 35,737. In all of 2020 it was 29,815.
A list of the countries involved gives some idea why so many unfortunate people are risking their lives. Many of the asylum seekers come from Chad, Eritrea, Iraq, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. There are now so many arrivals that the Immigration Service Union – the union that represents the UK's Border Force staff – accepts that the conditions in which many asylum seekers are held are unacceptable. The BBC reported that last week, 500-plus asylum seekers spent more than 24 hours in a cold, empty building in Dover sleeping on a concrete floor and sharing just two portable toilets. Charities including the British Red Cross want a change in the failed UK policy, noting that "nobody puts their life at risk unless they are absolutely desperate and feel they have no other options".
The real problem is difficult to solve but quite simple to explain.
The perilous journeys in small boats are organised by criminal gangs of people-traffickers who are reported to charge about €3,000 ($3,400) per person. The asylum seekers choose this route because there are no safe and legal routes for them to come to the UK from France. Until British and French officials establish a fair process to enable genuine asylum seekers to travel legally to Britain, the trade will continue and quite possibly increase. But for several years Conservative governments in the UK have openly talked of creating what they once called a "hostile environment" for so-called illegal migrants.
Creating a humane system, therefore, would alienate some Conservative voters and supporters. And yet, many of those who do manage to get to the UK have a good chance of achieving asylum because their cases are genuine. Some 59 per cent of appeals by Iranians, 69 per cent by Sudanese asylum seekers and 73 per cent by Syrians are successful. Under British law, they truly are seen to be people in great need.
Human rights groups want a total rethink. This would involve creating "humanitarian visas", enabling asylum seekers to substantiate their claims legally rather than risking their lives on the sea. I have also witnessed some of those who have come ashore near the white cliffs of Dover. Typically they sit on the road where they are held by Border Force and police, anxiously waiting to be "processed". Looking at the faces of those who have risked everything and perhaps lost everything, the words on America's Statue of Liberty come to mind.
"... your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me
I lift my lamp beside the golden door."
In Britain right now, we need to lift our own lamp of welcome beside our own golden door. The world needs a better way to deal with those yearning to breathe free.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
CABINET%20OF%20CURIOSITIES%20EPISODE%201%3A%20LOT%2036
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EGuillermo%20del%20Toro%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Tim%20Blake%20Nelson%2C%20Sebastian%20Roche%2C%20Elpidia%20Carrillo%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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MATCH INFO
Quarter-finals
Saturday (all times UAE)
England v Australia, 11.15am
New Zealand v Ireland, 2.15pm
Sunday
Wales v France, 11.15am
Japan v South Africa, 2.15pm
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
Jumanji: The Next Level
Director: Jake Kasdan
Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Nick Jonas
Two out of five stars
What is dialysis?
Dialysis is a way of cleaning your blood when your kidneys fail and can no longer do the job.
It gets rid of your body's wastes, extra salt and water, and helps to control your blood pressure. The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes and hypertension.
There are two kinds of dialysis — haemodialysis and peritoneal.
In haemodialysis, blood is pumped out of your body to an artificial kidney machine that filter your blood and returns it to your body by tubes.
In peritoneal dialysis, the inside lining of your own belly acts as a natural filter. Wastes are taken out by means of a cleansing fluid which is washed in and out of your belly in cycles.
It isn’t an option for everyone but if eligible, can be done at home by the patient or caregiver. This, as opposed to home haemodialysis, is covered by insurance in the UAE.
