Matt Rodda
Main Page: Matt Rodda (Labour - Reading Central)Department Debates - View all Matt Rodda's debates with the Home Office
(5 years, 11 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Sajid Javid
The hon. Lady suggests that these people are not able to seek asylum in other safe countries. France, for example, is a perfectly safe country, and if these people are fleeing persecution it is to their advantage that they claim asylum in the first safe country they are in and are not encouraged to take dangerous journeys.
Matt Rodda (Reading East) (Lab)
My right hon. Friend the Member for Hackney North and Stoke Newington (Ms Abbott) made an important point that the Home Secretary has so far ignored. When will he admit the telling impact of the Government’s austerity policies on this serious problem, and when will he report to the House on what further resources are being allocated to help?
Sajid Javid
If the hon. Gentleman is suggesting that these boat crossings are taking place because of UK Government spending, that is plainly ridiculous.