A woman whose leave to remain in Britain was revoked after 25 years in the country because of a non-violent offence was told that to keep in touch with her children, she could use Skype. Her British-born son suffers crippling pain from sickle cell.
When a young boy needs a hug, Skype doesn’t cut it.
A 30-year-old man was deported because his wife does not earn the £18,600 required for a spousal visa. If you want to live in Britain with your spouse. Otherwise, it’s send them home and use Skype to show you love them.
Said Jamaica’s British High Commissioner David Fitton: “Some are people who have committed crimes in the UK and served their sentences in prison. Others are immigration offenders who no longer have a valid reason to stay… We work closely with the Jamaican authorities to help them resettle.”
Technically, he may well be right. But in terms of presentation, flights like these are disastrous. A similar flight brought 42 deportees to Jamaica in September.
Two days after last week’s charter, there was a memorial service for Evelyn Smith, who died last month at 102. She held the Defence Medal and the War Medal for service in the British Army in World War II.
Since last year, the dominant trend in British politics has been dislike mistrust of foreigners and immigrants.
Anti-foreigner sentiment drove the narrow vote to leave the European Union in the Brexit referendum last June.
Prime minister Theresa May has given over-riding priority to immigration controls.
There’s talk of reviving the Commonwealth as a trading bloc. Fifty-plus years on from Independence, that’s pure fantasy.