British Lifeboats upholding British values

 

I celebrate the wonderful work of our lifeboat volunteers. It’s inspiring and reassuring. They continue to uphold British values in spite the storms and tempests of politically-inspired news reporting all around them.

The coxswain of a lifeboat on the Kent coast said this week – when asked about their saving the lives of desperate people who’ve taken to over-crowded dinghies to cross the channel:

“We do our job without prejudice. Of course we’re aware there’s a significant backdrop of political discussion. Our role is to rescue those who need our help”.

Meanwhile the dog-whistle politics of some MPs and Ministers is intended to stoke a public backlash against desperate people who’ve been driven to desperate measures to cross the channel. Conservative MPs claim these people are “invading migrants”. It’s not unusual to see them resorting to tactics designed to provoke prejudice and fear. Especially when they’re desperate to avert attention from their mishandling of something they’re trying to hide – like, in this case, their mishandling of the pandemic, the A level and GCSE exams fiasco and the botching of Brexit negotiations.

So it’s reassuring that British values of professionalism, kindness and decency are upheld by our front line emergency services like our remarkable army of lifeboat volunteers.

You restore our faith in our country and in humanity. Thank you.