IN an interview with the BBC yesterday, the Home Secretary stated: “This barge has accommodated people in the past – asylum seekers, oil rig workers – and barges of this kind have been used to accommodate asylum seekers, for example in Scotland.”
This statement was disingenuous in a number of ways. It does not reflect the fact the UK Government has more than doubled the capacity of the barge, nor that many of the occupants will not have a good, or indeed any, grasp of English or have had any emergency response training, all of which add significantly to the risk profile of the accommodation.
It would also be interesting to hear the Home Secretary explain where and when she believes “barges of this kind” have been used to accommodate asylum seekers in Scotland.
The fact that politicians can appear on TV and make unsupported or uninformed statements of this sort without either challenge or follow-up clarification from the broadcaster is nothing short of scandalous.
Cameron Crawford
Rothesay
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel