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Conservative party deputy chairman\u00a0Lee\u00a0Anderson\u00a0has said that Calais refugee charities are \u201cjust as bad as people smugglers\u201d.<\/p>\n
The outspoken right-wing MP for Ashfield accused the northern France-based organisations of \u201cfuelling\u201d migrants\u2019 desire to cross the English Channel in small boats.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got the people smugglers, you\u2019ve got the camps, the charities at the camps,\u201d Mr Anderson told the Sunday Telegraph.<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cYou\u2019ve then got, when you get to England, the hotels, the lefty lawyers \u2013 it is one big multimillion-pound industry.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr\u00a0Anderson\u00a0claimed that on a recent trip to Calais with the home affairs select committee, he saw \u201chundreds of young men\u201d being helped by workers at the British Care4Calais charity.<\/p>\n
He claimed that the migrants were \u201cencouraged\u201d to make the dangerous crossing by being taught English by the volunteers. \u201cThey weren\u2019t fleeing any war, or persecution, they told us that they wanted to come for a better life in the UK.\u201d<\/p>\n
In response, Care4Calais said: \u201cOur operations in Northern France focus on the provision of humanitarian aid and we seek to provide some friendship and dignity through activities like English lessons, football matches, and simple teas and coffees.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe provide no assistance, or encouragement. to refugees with journeys to the UK. We do not want any individual to attempt to cross the Channel in a small boat, or by other dangerous means,\u201d a spokesperson said.<\/p>\n
The added: \u201cWe see the real-life consequences of people smuggling; that is why we campaign for safe routes for people who want to seek asylum in the UK.\u201d<\/p>\n
The volunteer-run charity distributes aid to refugees sleeping rough in and around Calais \u2013many of whom have fled war, persecution and political oppression, according to its website.<\/p>\n
A former Labour councillor before joining the Tories, Mr\u00a0Anderson\u00a0has been no stranger to controversy.<\/p>\n
He drew criticism earlier this month by calling for the return of the death penalty in an interview with The Spectator magazine a few days before his appointment.<\/p>\n
Having promoted Mr Anderson to the deputy chair position, Mr Sunak was forced to note that neither he, nor the government, shared this view.<\/p>\n
In the same interview, Mr\u00a0Anderson\u00a0said migrants arriving unlawfully in Britain should be returned the \u201csame day\u201d to where they came from. \u201cI\u2019d put them on a Royal Navy frigate or whatever and sail it to Calais?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Mr\u00a0Anderson\u00a0doubled down on his views on Sunday, insisting that bringing back the death penalty is \u201cnot some fringe or lunatic opinion\u201d. However, he did acknowledge it would likely never become policy.<\/p>\n
A former Labour councillor before joining the Tories, Mr\u00a0Anderson\u00a0has a long history of controversial remarks, having criticised food bank users and the England men\u2019s football team for taking the knee in protest at racism.<\/p>\n
He has been dubbed \u201c30p\u00a0Lee\u201d for claiming that meals could be prepared for that sum and suggesting people using\u00a0food banks\u00a0could not budget or cook properly. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politicsGet our free Inside Politics email Conservative party deputy chairman\u00a0Lee\u00a0Anderson\u00a0has said that Calais refugee charities are \u201cjust as bad as people smugglers\u201d. The outspoken right-wing MP for Ashfield accused the northern France-based organisations of \u201cfuelling\u201d migrants\u2019 desire […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1726,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n