If only Kemi Badenoch’s level competence was anywhere near her level of arrogance #PMQs #PoliticsLive

I'm going to say this again in clear, simple terms so there can be no equivocation: Prior to Brexit, immigrants very rarely came to the UK in small boats because it is an extremely dangerous mode of transport. They came in lorries. Organised smuggling gangs knew that because there was free movement of goods between EU countries that there was a high chance that a lorry concealing immigrants would not be searched. I am sure you all remember that terrible case of a lorry-load of migrants from China and Vietnam that was abandoned in Essex. 31 men and 8 women died. The onset of Brexit meant that gradually, from approx 2018 onwards, more and more stringent checks began being carried out on lorries, as well as increased security at ferry ports - even Newhaven-Dieppe are surrounded with high barbed wire security fences, and every vehicle leaving Dieppe is opened and checked, so I imagine it must be pretty much the same at Calais and Boulogne as well. We have no idea how many people a year arrived in the UK unlawfully by lorry. The reason for this is because they were literally untrackable. Occasionally you would see a lorry stopped by the M2 or the M25 with a handful of people standing behind the safety barrier while the police had the blue lights on. But they certainly could not track what they didn't know about. The likelihood is that there were a great many more people getting into the country. The overwhelming majority of them would disappear into the undergrowth, never to be seen again until either a) they committed an offence b) they were caught in raids working illegally c) they either walked into a police station to claim asylum almost immediately or d) they popped over the parapet several years later because they wanted to regularise their status, either by marrying, or because they had children, or under the Long Residence rules - it used to be 15 years but is now 20 years. If you can prove you have been in the UK continuously for 20 years and have otherwise kept your nose clean, you are entitled to limited leave to remain. Eventually you might get settlement after 30 years - again, if you can prove you have always been in the country in that time. You will not get nationality if you entered the country illegally these days, though, unless you can show that there is something exceptional about your contribution to society. The small boats are different. The small boats are highly visible. The small boats - and their passengers - are very easy to spot, and very easy for the Coastguard and Border Force to track. A man from the BBC used to spend all his time stood on a cliff counting them post-Brexit. Yes, there will be the occasional one that slips through undetected. But that is the opposite of the way it was with lorry smuggling, where it was the occasional one that was actually detected, and the majority slipping through un-noticed. The irony of Farage, Lowe, Robinson, Tommo and all the other far-right screechers claiming we are unsafe because of "fighting age men" arriving on these boats is hilarious if it wasn't so desperate. When the boats arrive, every person is fingerprinted, screened and vetted as best we can, although another irony of Brexit is we no longer have automatic access to Europol except if we have grounds to suspect someone is a criminal rather than just an asylum seeker, so well done Brexit for that as well. Also, as we are no longer party to what's called the Dublin Agreement, whereas before we could make an application to France to take them back, and take responsibility for the asylum claim, now we are out of the EU we can't do that either. But at least we know who is here, we have their fingerprints, and we know who they are. In short, we are arguably safer from the "fighting age men" now that at any time in the past 30-odd years. The numbers are reducing. The numbers of crossings are reducing. I hold no candle for Labour these days, but at least they are processing the backlog the Tories (deliberately?) built up and those who don't have the right here are being deported as well. Boris Johnson is as full of shit as he always was. Feel free to share this.

The BBC has been showcasing the views of oil tycoon Jim Ratcliffe in every news show for the last 24 hours, noting that he's "one of Britain's richest men". Shouldn't this be "one of Monaco's richest men"? How about similar airtime for (say) one of Britain's poorest women?

#R4today Billionaire Radcliffe pays no UK Income tax and yet receives UK Tax money to prop up his failing business; he has no authority to advise us. Why are @BBCr4today and @BBCNews giving him repeated, uncritical, airtime?

The BBC gave this Monaco based tax exile free airtime to talk about how great the empire was, how immigration is out of control, how rich people are taxed too much, why we need to make cuts and need more fossil fuels. Soft interview, no push back, no alternative voice. He's not a politician, not elected, he represents nothing other than his offshore bank account. I don't care if you like Vigil and Strictly, other channels can produce these. The only thing truly unique about the BBC is its news. And that news operation is a toxic cancer poisoning the national conversation. Get this BBC in the bin, use its its money to create a genuine public service broadcaster that isn't the mouthpiece of the billionaires. #BrokenMedia #BBCBias

Esther McVey, Minister for Common Sense, and her husband talk a lot about wasteful public spending. But how careful are they with your money in their own lives? We’ve found out. 👀

I have published a blog (link in last tweet of this thread) digging deeper into the controversy (first reported in @ScotNational on Sunday) over the dues demanded for the exercise of ferry rights over the Caolas an Lamhachaidh at Kyle Rhea. 1/5

i love how everyone still calls twitter twitter

Cricket should be owned by its members. That's why we must oppose demutualisation, and keep county cricket owned by fans. Agree? Sign your name below: party.coop/campaign/cricket/…

Reform Latest 2 councillors died before election Several now suspended for various bits of bigotry At least 1 doesn’t exist Others want to stand down cos they didn’t know it’s unpaid 1 thought he would be in Parliament They don’t need a Whip, they need a Missing Persons Officer

Reform - financed by the world The aim destroy the country See Trump for template

Thank you @Morrisons … genius!

Laura Kuenssberg should be embarrassed. She won't be, but she should. Nothing on the Nathan Gill story. Nothing on the Covid Inquiry and her beloved Boris Johnson's incompetence. Disgraceful bias and a blatant lack of impartiality. #BBCLauraK

According to Laura Kuenssberg, this week has been a 'shambles' because of a leadership challenge that never happened and an income tax rise that was never formally announced Yet both were speculated on endlessly Maybe the media is the problem? #BBCLauraK #bbcbreakfast

This is a great story Farage wants to destroy the National Health System because he will make an enormous amount of money out if it

Stunning rainbow over Dunoon from @StephenAHenry 🌈 💙

My colleagues & I have taken a huge gamble to set up @thenerve_news. We’re trying to build a new independent publication from the ground up. Social media is our only distribution for now. Sharing this article in your networks would make a huge difference. Thank you! 🙏🙏🙏

#Dalmore Distillery, #Alness in 1918 when it was also known as U.S. Naval Base 17. Between February and November 1918, almost 40,000 mines were assembled here before being transported on the specially constructed railway line from the distillery to the harbour at #Invergordon and then deployment in the North Sea. The larger locomotive is from the Hull and Barnsley Railway. The smaller pannier tank engine is probably from the Great Western Railway. #WWI [source: Naval History and Heritage Command]

What is so difficult to run a water company that merits a £3.2 million salary, what are we missing, besides water #r4today telegraph.co.uk/business/202…