Latest news with #borders
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Poll: Brits' immigration fears at highest level since Brexit referendum
Brits' immigration fears have hit the highest level since the Brexit referendum, according to a poll. YouGov research has found 53 per cent view control of borders as one of the three biggest problems facing the country. Labour has been struggling to counter the threat from Reform as Nigel Farage vows to take a tough approach on immigration. The insurgent party has been recording a clear lead in polls.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Brits' immigration fears at highest level since Brexit referendum - with issue now seen as bigger than stalling economy
Brits' immigration fears have hit the highest level since the Brexit referendum, according to a poll. YouGov research has found 53 per cent view control of borders as one of the three biggest problems facing the country. That was up two points over the past week, and more than the 48 per cent who cited the economy among their their main concerns. The score for immigration is a peak since June 2016, when the UK voted to leave the EU. The findings will cause alarm in No10 as Keir Starmer struggles to get a grip on the Channel boats crisis. Legal net migration is also still running at eye-watering levels, although it has fallen from record highs. Sir Keir was heavily criticised over a 'migrant merry go round' deal with Emmanuel Macron last week that will see some Channel arrivals sent back to France - but the UK take an equivalent numbers of other asylum seekers. Labour has been struggling to counter the threat from Reform as Nigel Farage vows to take a tough approach on immigration. The insurgent party has been recording a clear lead in polls. Last week Mr Farage took to a boat in the Channel to witness people attempting the perilous crossing. The YouGov research found 48 per cent of Brits regarded the economy as the main concern, down four points in a week. A third cited health, 23 per cent crime, and 21 per cent defence. Some 18 per cent said the environment with the same mentioning wefare. Housing and tax worries were lower at 16 per cent and 14 per cent respectively.
Arab News
5 days ago
- Politics
- Arab News
Lebanese army shuts illegal crossings along border with Syria
BEIRUT: A patrol from the Lebanese army and the Intelligence Directorate on Monday closed several smuggling routes in Masharih Al-Qaa, a region between Lebanon and Syria that lacks clearly defined borders. A Lebanese military source said the area was used for smuggling goods, fuel and people and that the army head 'erected dirt mounds and rocks to prevent the passage of vehicles and motorcycles.' The border between Lebanon and the Syrian Arab Republic stretches about 375 km and runs through towns, villages and mountainous regions. The Lebanese government estimates there to be 136 illegal crossing points, of which more than half are in the Bekaa region. A shortage of personnel and surveillance equipment means many of these areas are vulnerable to criminal activity, including human trafficking and the smuggling of weapons, drugs and other goods. These open borders have served the interests of Hezbollah and Palestinian factions allied with Syria. Over the years, Hezbollah has established its own border crossings and helped protect others used by smugglers from its support base. Palestinian factions also established their border posts, which served as channels for weapons and people. Dismantling them was the first task undertaken by the Lebanese army in implementing the policy of confining weapons to the hands of the state. The army on Sunday denied claims made on social media that armed men had entered Lebanon from Syria via the eastern mountain range and that it had withdrawn from border areas in the Bekaa. Military units 'continue to carry out their routine missions to control the Lebanese-Syrian border, while also monitoring the internal security situation to prevent any breach,' it said. It also appealed for 'accuracy in reporting news related to the army and the security situation, to act responsibly and to refrain from spreading rumors that lead to tension among citizens.' Since the regime change in Syria, several meetings between the two countries have been held to improve coordination on border security. On March 28, Lebanese Defense Minister Michel Menassa and his Syrian counterpart, Murhaf Abu Qasra, signed an agreement in Jeddah regarding border demarcation and the strengthening of security coordination. This came in the wake of violent clashes between the Syrian army and groups affiliated with Hezbollah along the border earlier in the month. The issue of undefined borders dates back to the Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916, when France was granted the mandate over the two countries and drew the borders in a vague and incomplete manner. Some parts were demarcated in 1934, but large areas remained undefined. The Syrian regime later refused to officially recognize Lebanon as an independent state and considered it part of 'Greater Syria.' Kuwait expresses solidarity On Monday, the Kuwaiti First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Fahad Yousef Saud Al-Sabah met Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam. He said that Lebanon 'will remain Lebanon' and that the 'arms issue will be resolved soon.' He also affirmed Kuwait's support for Lebanon 'in all areas, especially security cooperation' and called for activating the work of the Kuwaiti-Lebanese Higher Joint Committee to explore avenues for assisting Lebanon. The president's media office said Aoun told the Kuwaiti minister of the 'importance of coordination to address common challenges, particularly in terms of security cooperation to combat drug smuggling and anything that threatens security in both countries.'
Telegraph
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Richard Tice criticises the King
Reform UK's deputy leader has criticised the King after raising the issue of 'borders' in his State banquet speech. In a rare political swipe at the monarch, Richard Tice said it was 'unwise' for the King to use 'any of that language about the boats' during Emmanuel Macron's state visit. His Majesty had said that Britain and France's shared challenges 'know no borders' and that the two countries 'face a multitude of more complex threats, emanating from multiple directions'. The Reform deputy chief said he believed that Queen Elizabeth II 'would have been much more careful' and would have refrained from raising the subject. At the state banquet at Windsor Castle, the King told attendees: 'These challenges know no borders: no fortress can protect us against them this time. 'Instead, the answer lies in partnership, and we – France and Britain – must help to lead the way. Our two nations share not only values, but also the tireless determination to act on them in the world.' Separately, the monarch later said: 'Our security services and police will go further still to protect us against the profound challenges of terrorism, organised crime, cyber attacks and, of course, irregular migration across the English Channel.' Asked whether he felt the King had 'got the balance right' in his address, Mr Tice told Politico's Westminster Insider podcast: 'The British monarch has a very special role in all state visits and relationships with heads of state. 'I don't think the late Queen would have included any of that language about the boats. I think she would have been much more careful. 'I presume that it's different speech writers, but I just don't think that she would have ended up in that pickle.' 'Unwise for the King to tread there' Asked about the King's remark that the nations' shared challenges 'know no borders', the Reform deputy leader said: 'Well they clearly do involve borders, and it's a critical part of sovereignty. 'I wonder whether the King read his speech or whether he fell into the trap that Keir Starmer fell into by admitting that he didn't read his speeches beforehand and therefore you couldn't rely on him to trust what he actually says. 'I think that is possible. The King obviously makes a lot of speeches, but the late Queen just wouldn't have gone there. She just wouldn't, and that might be something to do with her advisers.' He added: 'I think it was unwise for the King to tread there, that's the role of the political class to debate that sort of thing'. Farage on the King's comments Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, used his GB News show earlier this week to criticise the King's comments. He said: 'I'm not a Republican; I'm not in the habit of criticising the royal family. Perhaps he's been poorly advised. But actually, we are a fortress. We're an island. It gives us massive advantages, as it has done throughout the whole of history. ' And to say there are no borders... well, I suppose in some ways he's right, because at the moment, with the dinghies cross the Channel nothing much seems to happen. But I think the King is making a mistake in saying this.' It comes after the French president met Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative Party leader, and Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, but not Mr Farage. On Thursday, Mr Macron and Sir Keir announced a pilot 'one-in, one-out' deal for the return of Channel migrants. However, the Prime Minister faces a backlash over the deal, which was only agreed in principle, after it emerged it would likely mean just 50 migrants would be returned to France each week. The French president also used the joint press conference unveiling the deal to blame Brexit for the migrant crisis. He told journalists that the British people had been 'sold a lie' that leaving the EU would 'make it possible to fight more effectively against illegal immigration'. He added that 'our increasing problems require cooperation, a European approach' rather than what 'populists often sold'.
Daily Mail
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
I firmly believe NONE of the 74 young men I saw in that small boat should be free to roam our streets: NIGEL FARAGE in the English Channel
The events of the past 48 hours have been extraordinary. We voted for Brexit nine years ago to take back control of our borders and to make our own decisions about who should come into our country: not to accept diktats from European Union officials – or French presidents, as we saw yesterday. That's why I couldn't resist the temptation to book a boat and go out into the English Channel on the very day that the increasingly arrogant Emmanuel Macron was due to sit down to dictate terms to and the .
