Lifesaving charity RNLI have been at the end of a relentless campaign by far-right extremist political party Britain First over their efforts to rescue people from migrant boats in the English Channel.
The charity has vowed to continue rescuing people “without judgement or preference” after it is bombarded with hateful emails, reports the Independent.
Britain First began a campaign on Thursday which involved sending emails and messages out to their supporters urging them to join a “complaints drive aimed at the RNLI to pressure them to abandon their support for illegal immigrant [sic] and people trafficking and focus instead on saving British lives”.
An automated online form was set up by the group which sends emails written by Britain First leaders to the RNLI’s chief executive, Mark Dowie.
The messages do not disclose any link to Britain First, but claim to be from “concerned citizens” and “taxpayers”.
The messages read: “I am very, very angry that RNLI boats are being used in the English Channel to ferry illegal immigrants into Britain.
“I urge you to cease these treacherous activities.”
Another option of message claims to be from someone who has “huge respect for the RNLI” but finds its “recent support for illegal immigration and people trafficking in the English Channel abhorrent”.
RNLI is tasked by HM Coastguard, but hands over responsibility for rescued migrants to relevant authorities upon reaching land.
The Independent reported that Britain First’s website claimed that almost 3,000 emails had been sent by Friday afternoon, but the figure could not be independently verified.
A spokesman for the RNLI confirmed that they had already received numerous emails generated through the group’s platform.
He said: “The RNLI is proud of the humanitarian work of its volunteer lifeboat crews in the Channel and we are grateful for the outpouring of support we’ve recently received.
“The recent tragic deaths in the Channel are a sad reminder of just how dangerous it is to go to sea in one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes in boats not fit for the crossing, especially as winter approaches.
“We are a voluntary lifesaving charity, and will rescue anyone in trouble at sea, as the RNLI has been doing for nearly 200 years, without judgement or preference.”
Hope Not Hate, which is a counter-extremism group has launched a petition in response to Britain First’s campaign, which allows people to send messages of solidarity with the RNLI.
Rosie Carter, its director of policy, said: “Britain First claim to love this country, but denigrate and smear any of the things that are great about it.
“RNLI is a fantastic organisation, made of volunteers who risk their lives to save people at sea. Denigrating a charity which saves lives in order to fuel anti-migrant hate is despicable.”
The RNLI has been repeatedly singled out for criticism by right-wing groups and politicians, amid record crossings over the English Channel.
Last month, a group of fishermen allegedly tried to block an RNLI lifeboat from travelling to rescue asylum seekers, days before at least 27 people drowned off the coast of Calais.
A spokesperson for RNLI confirmed the incident had been reported to the police, and that the lifeboat was eventually able to launch.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel