The Conservative MP for Ashfield in Nottinghamshire has said the Government needs to "grow a backbone" and "send illegal immigrants straight back the same day". Lee Anderson was speaking in a debate in the House of Commons this afternoon (November 7) about the number of people crossing the Channel in small boats.
So far this year, around 40,000 people have made the perilous crossing - the highest number since figures began to be collected in 2018. During today's urgent question in the Commons, a number of Tories raised concerns about the suitability of hotels in their constituencies for accommodating migrants.
Mr Anderson said: "When I hear words like 'sourcing housing' and 'getting extra hotel spaces for illegal immigrants', it leaves a bitter taste in my throat. And I'll tell you what, I've got 5,000 people in Ashfield wanting to secure council housing and they cannot get one.
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"When are we going to stop blaming the French, the ECHR, the lefty lawyers? The blame lies in this place (Parliament).
"When are we going to grow a backbone and do the right thing and send them straight back the same day?" Immigration minister Robert Jenrick responded by telling Mr Anderson that while the UK should be "guided by our common desire for decency", it was "not right that migrants are put up in three or four-star hotels at exorbitant cost to the United Kingdom taxpayer".
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said earlier there is "not one simple solution" to tackling the number of people crossing the Channel in small boats. But he said there was an opportunity to work closely with European countries on illegal migration.
More details would be set out in the coming weeks, Mr Sunak added. Downing Street said talks on a deal with France on small boat crossings were in their "final stages".
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