Skip to main content
NEU Senior Regional Support Officer
Australian activists alarmed by Britain’s response to refugee boats

AUSTRALIAN refugee advocates are alarmed at reports that Britain’s military could be deployed to deal with the small number of refugee boats leaving France.

They were reacting to comments made by Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson on Sunday that “our navy, air force and army stand ready to assist.”

Home Secretary Sajid Javid has now sent two more Border Force cutters, which had been in operation in Greece, to the Channel to help deter and disrupt refugee crossings, he announced on Monday, although he has not yet called in the armed forces.

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
HMS Spey in Brisbane, Australia ahead of the England v Nigeria Women's World Cup match. The arrival of the state-of-the-art Offshore Patrol Vessel HMS Spey marks the first visit of the Royal Navy to Brisbane since the HMS Monmouth in 1995. Picture date: Monday August 7th, 2023
Features / 15 August 2025
15 August 2025

From 35,000 troops in Talisman Sabre war games to HMS Spey provocations in the Taiwan Strait, Labour continues Tory militarisation — all while claiming to uphold ‘one China’ diplomatic agreements from 1972, reports KENNY COYLE

Channel Migrants
Features / 9 May 2025
9 May 2025

Secret consultation documents finally released after the Morning Star’s two-year freedom of information battle show the Home Office misrepresented public opinion, claiming support for policies that most respondents actually strongly criticised as dangerous and unfair, writes SOLOMON HUGHES