The paper distorts reality and fuels resentment of hungry asylum seekers
In the alternative universe curated by the right-wing press, Britain is being far too compassionate in its response to the Calais ‘migrant crisis’.
Today’s Mail on Sunday shrieks that hundreds of ‘stowaway’ migrants are being put up in hotels at taxpayers’ expense, receiving hot meals in luxury accommodation.
However, this claim is grossly misleading, as the story itself eventually reveals.
“Hundreds of migrants who have smuggled themselves into Britain from Calais are being put up in hotels at taxpayers’ expense.”
It claims illegal ‘stowaways’ are being given ‘their own hotel room, three cooked meals a day and a cash allowance of £35 a week – all within days of entering the UK’, at hotels with gyms, spas and swimming pools.
But around half way through the story, the word ‘migrants’ is suddenly replaced by ‘asylum seekers’.
So what’s going on here? Writer Jon Danzig has put it succinctly:
“100 asylum seekers (not hundreds of migrants) are being temporarily put up in hotels by private contractor Serco ‘at no extra cost to taxpayers‘ because their immigration centres are currently full.”
This is based on information in the Mail’s own story:
“Serco said last night that it was housing 100 asylum seekers in hotels but insisted it did not cost taxpayers extra as the money comes out of the general funds it receives from the Home Office.”
Comparing these facts with the story’s opening claims, this is very shady work from the Mail.
Technically, asylum seekers are also migrants. But the terms have different legal and political meanings, as the Mail well knows. It uses ‘migrants’ on purpose to fudge the difference.
Again, technically the people in question are in hotels ‘at taxpayers’ expense’ – but using money already given to Serco, not extra funds from the UK budget.
As for exaggerating the numbers from Seco’s 100 (not in quotes, interestingly) to ‘hundreds’, and leaving the temporary and emergency nature of what is really happening till later in the story, this is grossly misleading.
Readers might conclude this story is representative of the UK’s response to the migrant crisis, rather than a novel exception.
The context is important. All week the Daily Mail has been calling on the government to get tough and ‘send in the army’, as if people fleeing Syria, Somalia, Sudan and Eritrea haven’t faced enough violence yet.
Yesterday the paper’s front page scoffed at prime minister David Cameron’s sending sniffer dogs and building a fence in Calais, under the headline ‘How feeble’.
Today’s Mail on Sunday does accidentally raise questions about how well private companies like Serco are running detention centres, and whether more money should be spent on ‘processing’ migrants and asylum seekers.
But it seems they’d rather distort reality and fuel resentment about tired, frightened, desperate people having a hot sandwich and somewhere to sleep.
***
As an antidote to stories like this, MediaWatch recommends this piece by Fleet Street Fox in the Mirror and this report from Calais by the Observer’s Nick Cohen.
Adam Barnett is a staff writer at Left Foot Forward. Follow MediaWatch on Twitter
Read more:
Rod Liddle says send migrants back to Syria in the Sun’s shameful Calais coverage
Daily Mail’s 5 step guide to demonising migrants
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45 Responses to “Mail on Sunday’s shady ‘Calais migrants in hotels’ story is willfully misleading”
Jack
Amazing how the left try to break down this story and make it seem innocuous. The fact is these illegal economic migrants are here because this country is a soft touch. I wonder how many ISIS nutjobs have made their way into this country and, at the moment, are enjoying a pleasant sauna and swim at taxpayer’s expense.
Once established in this country – only one in nine is returned, they will soon begin to criticise everything about our culture and begin to impose yet more of their religion. Our government, of course, will go down on one knee. The lefties responsible for articles like these will celebrate.
Jack
Another one who hates his own country. These muslims were killing each other as they’ve been doing for centuries We went in to help. The fact that when we leave these people cannot govern themselves is their fault, not ours. In Libya we created the conditions for them to form a government and live peacefully but they couldn’t. Again that is their fault not the Wests.
You spout left wing rhetoric with all it’s awful self-righteous, pompous importance.
Try going to ISIS and talking this bulls***t and see their reaction. They won’t sit down with you and negotiate. Some times you have to fight. That is a lesson you have yet to learn. Maybe one dy you will have matured enough to appreciate the values of the country you live in
Melody Collis
well get rid of all the romanian gypsies, after all there is no war in romania IS THERE, so why are they hear,
they get nice homes benefits, they just sit on there back sides all day doing nothing, moaning that there benefits are not enough to live on, yet they have not paid any taxes, get rid of them all, and let the syrians come hear, after all there lives are in danger, the romanians are not, wake up england help those, who desperately need help, NOT SCROUNGERS, who just come hear for hand-out
r jones
“Another one who hates his own country” – yawn. Another ad hominem attack with no substance.
“Try going to ISIS” – If we hadn’t spent decades installing, then violently deposing dictators in the region, maybe there wouldn’t BE an ISIS.
Oil would be more expensive, but we have to pay the REAL price, one way or another – a concept which I fear you will never mature enough to appreciate. It’s much easier to wallow in a tough-guy violent fantasy of shock and awe, isn’t it? In that respect, you’re not that different from ISIS.
Jack
What liberal pacifists like you don’t understand is that, unpleasant as it might be, there comes a time when you have to fight for your freedoms. If our fathers had not fought the Nazis we’d all be talking German. Right wing Salafism is endemic in the Muslim world and has existed well before any western intervention. Cut the ridiculous personal abuse, grow up and go get yourself an education.