Dame Caroline Dinenage MP has written an excoriating letter to the Home Secretary after a flawed plan to land a mega-dinghy packed with illegal immigrants at Fort Blockhouse in her Gosport constituency caused large scale protests.
The protests, which saw hundreds of people block Gosport streets, resulted in six arrests by Hampshire Police, after emergency services from across the region were deployed to Gosport and Portsmouth.
Caroline released a statement on Facebook at 7:00pm notifying constituents that Border Force had “intercepted the small boat that was reported as crossing the Channel” and was “taking those on board to Dover by water.” This followed a full day of preparations by Border Force and emergency services in and around Fort Blockhouse to prepare for the disembarkation of the migrant vessel, despite repeated warnings by key local stakeholders against the plans.
Now Caroline has written to the Home Secretary to protest against what she describes as “the spectacular arrogance and cloth eared ignorance of the Home Office”.
Her letter asks the Home Secretary ten questions about the Government’s preparation for and response to long distance Channel crossings by mega-dinghies that land in Hampshire, including whether there were plans to reimburse Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary for the costs of policing the protests:
“1. When were Ministers and senior Home Office officials first made aware that this vessel was likely to arrive off the central south coast, and when was the first operational briefing held?
“2. Who took the decision to identify Gosport, and specifically Fort Blockhouse, as a potential disembarkation point, and what risk assessment or operational assessment was undertaken before that decision was made?
“3. Why was Gosport continued to be considered as the initial destination despite the repeated and explicit representations from myself, Gosport Borough Council and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Police and Crime Commissioner about its unsuitability?
“4. What consideration was given to the impact on local residents, businesses, roads, emergency services and policing resources before Gosport was identified as a potential landing point?
“5. What was the total cost of yesterday’s deployment of police, ambulance, Border Force and other emergency-service resources, including any costs incurred by services outside Hampshire?
“6. Will the Home Office reimburse Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary, the ambulance service and any other public bodies for the additional costs incurred as a direct result of this operation?
“7. Why was the decision to take the passengers to Dover by sea not made significantly earlier, particularly when this was precisely the course of action requested by local representatives in advance?
“8. At what point was the decision made to abandon the proposed Gosport landing, who authorised that decision, and what information or change in circumstances led to it?
“9. What assessment has the Home Office now made of the suitability of Fort Blockhouse and Portsmouth Harbour for future migrant boat disembarkations, in light of yesterday’s events and the concerns raised repeatedly beforehand?
“10. Will you give me an unequivocal assurance that Gosport will not be used as a disembarkation location for future migrant boat arrivals without prior consultation with me and the relevant local authorities and emergency services?”
Caroline had previously written to the Home Secretary on September 17th with her concerns that the Home Office might be considering the Portsmouth Harbour area for disembarking illegal immigrants. She wrote that it was “virtually impossible to guarantee that immigrant arrivals would leave [the] peninsula safely.” This call was taken up by Gosport Borough Council Leader Zoe Huggins and Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones. Ms Jones said that “the burden on the police to deal with the arrival and potential protest activity is unsustainable.”
Responding to the incident on Facebook, Caroline said:
“When I met the Borders Minister last week, I insisted that the Home Office should ensure that any boats intercepted in the Channel are taken directly to Dover by water, rather than brought into Portsmouth Harbour. I repeated that request in writing to the Home Secretary.
“It was therefore incredibly disappointing to discover through whispers and rumours that the Government was once again considering bringing a boat into Portsmouth Harbour.”
Caroline called for a full review by the Government and for a quick response to her letter.
Writing in the letter, Caroline said:
“The people of Gosport deserve better than to find out through rumours that a major Home Office operation is being prepared on their doorstep, while their emergency services are mobilised without adequate local communication or consideration of the consequences.”
