Farage says Britain SHOULD accept refugees from Syria

[dutchman]

Nigel Farage faced a backlash from his own supporters last night after calling for Britain to admit refugees from the civil war in Syria.



Supporters of the UK Independence Party denounced their leader after Mr Farage used an interview with the BBC yesterday to call for Britain to allow those fleeing Syria to come to the UK.

He said refugees fleeing from conflicts were ‘a very different thing’ from economic migrants.

But he was attacked online by UKIP supporters - who said the country was already ‘full up’ and warned they would no longer vote for UKIP unless he changes his mind.

Mr Farage’s policy goes further than the Coalition, which has limited its help to financial support for countries taking in refugees.

The UKIP leader said: ‘I think refugees are a very different thing to economic migration and I think this country should honour the 1951 declaration on refugee status that was agreed.

‘The original ideas of defining what a refugee is were good ones and I think, actually, there is a responsibility on all of us in the free West to try and help some of those people fleeing Syria, literally in fear of their lives.’

Mr Farage argued that a refugee - fleeing a country fearing for their life - and a migrant who moves to earn more money are two different things

Mr Farage called for ‘a proper debate’ about ‘the difference between a refugee - who fears for his or her life - or somebody moving simply for economic benefit’.

He did not put a figure on how many of the nine million Syrians displaced by war who should be allowed into the UK, but Labour has said Britain should accept up to 500.

Mr Farage’s intervention appeared to be an attempt to show voters that UKIP is not opposed to all immigration following months of accusations from political rivals that the party is racist.

[rebbonk]

Foot in mouth syndrome! - That has just cost Farage a raft of votes