Ask the government to continue to support the "Dubs Amendment" - Open letter to Julian Sturdy MP

Dear Mr Sturdy,

I am afraid that I find myself writing to you only too frequently at the moment because of the appalling actions being undertaken by the government.  Here we have one of the vilest and most hypocritical actions that we have seen it take which will make hardly any difference to the number of people coming to the country, but will have a vast effect on a small number of vulnerable youngsters.

The government has announced that it after the current people being accepted under the “Dubs Amendment” no more will be accepted.  I, like many many other people find this shocking and hypocritical.  When the government eventually accepted the amendment they said that they would obey both the spirit and the letter of the law.  It is clear that they never had any intention of doing so as they have been laggardly and niggardly in their implementation.  From the debates at the time it was clear that the number that would be accepted would be in the thousands, but only about 350 children will have come. 

To suggest that the country struggles so much that we can barely accept on vulnerable young refugee in every two constituencies is simply ludicrous.  From discussions in York I know that York would be willing to accept more than one.

We have duties to refugees under international law. We have moral duties and as the fifth largest economy in the world we can clearly afford to take more.

Please will you write to the Home Secretary and the Immigration Minister demanding that as a simple matter of humanity they urgently review and rescind this decision and ensure that all eligible children are accepted.

Best wishes

Tom.

Tom Franklin
4 Frazer Court
York
YO30 5FH

Refugees - open Letter to Julian Sturdy MP

Dear Mr Sturdy,

I am writing to ask you to press Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, to restart the rescue of refugees.

Refugees, including children, have been evicted from the "Jungle Camp" at Calais. A large number of children have had no provision made for them. Some of the children have been rounded up by the French riot police during the day and then let go at night with nowhere to sleep except in the "Jungle Camp" which is even more dangerous than it was before the demolition.

We have a legal duty to admit all the children with a connection to the UK, and a moral duty to admit many more. The actions of the UK in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria and other countries (including armed intervention and the sales of arms to parties to the conflicts) are partly responsible for the creation of the refugees. We cannot create the problem and then walk away from it - which is what this government (and to be honest many previous governments) have been doing.

The UK has taken far fewer refugees than most countries, and being the fifth largest economy in the world (according to the government) we are clearly in a position to do much more.

We have also made it nigh on impossible for refugees to come to the UK by pushing for and supporting EU Directive 2001/51/EC which effectively makes airlines the frontline preventing refugees flying safely to the UK (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YO0IRsfrPQ4 for a short 3 minute video explaining this).

Please, as a matter of urgency, press Amber Rudd to admit many more refugees. The UK has the resources to take tens of thousands and York City Council has agreed to accept and support some, as have many other Councils so there is nothing to prevent the country from accepting them and sending a message of hope to the world.


Yours sincerely,

Tom Franklin

letter to French Ambassador re: blocking aid to Calais

The Ambassador

French Embassy:

58 Knightsbridge

London

SW1X 7JT

Re: refusal of entry to France

20 June  2016

Dear Ambassador,

I am writing to express my outrage at your country’s refusal to allow the aid convoy to Calais to enter France on Saturday 18 June.  As a member of that convoy I had booked a ticket on the ferry months ago and driven from York to Dover in order to get the ferry and deliver the aid to refugees in Calais.

I was shocked that customs had been ordered to prevent our humanitarian convoy from entering France when what we wished to do was deliver aid and express our solidarity with the refugees.  In the past I have seen some of the worst countries in the world blocking aid, but never expected to see that happen within the EU, where freedom of movement is one of our basic rights.

I would like you to reassure me that humanitarian convoys will never again be blocked from entering France.

I also left some of the aid, that I would have personally delivered to refugees, on the steps of the Embassy.  I hope that you will have this delivered to the refugees as a matter of urgency, as I was prevented from doing so.

Please can you tell me what has happened to the aid that was left at the embassy and when it was delivered.

Yours sincerely

Tom Franklin

Complaint to Foreign office re blocking of aid convoy to Calais

The Rt Hon Philip Hammond

Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Downing Street West

LONDON

SW1A 2AL

Re: refusal of entry to France

20 June  2016

Dear Secretary of State

I am writing to ask you to complain to the French government in the strongest possible terms over their refusal to allow an aid convoy delivering aid to refugees in Calais to enter France.

On Saturday 18 June around 250 cars, vans and lorries attempted to deliver aid to refugees in France.  This had been planned for many months (I signed up several months ago), and we were bringing many tons of urgently needed aid for some of the most desperate people.

When we got to Dover we were help up at the port and the French authorities refused to allow us through and took around an hour to process a few cars before rejecting them.  Not only is there supposed to be free movement of people within the EU, but we were an aid convoy delivering aid.  If this had been aid to refugees in some other country the convoy would have been applauded and supported by the French government, but instead they were preventing its delivery.

Please “request and require” of the French authorities that they “allow [UK citizens] to pass freely without let or hindrance, and afford the bearer such assistance and protection as may be necessary”.  And that they allow all future aid convoys through.

I look forward to hearing what you have done and the French response.

Yours sincerely

Tom Franklin

CC: Julian Sturdy MP