Illegals Sneak in on Bus Full of Soldiers

More madness to report from the world of Britain's immigration problems - this time literally from the front line.

Two Afghan illegal immigrants emerged from the luggage hold of a coach and found themselves in the middle of a high-security Army barracks - they had stowed away in a vehicle bringing British troops back from a training exercise in the Alps.

The Mail has more:

The man and teenager were found after the coach arrived at Hammersley Barracks, Hampshire, in the early hours of Friday, March 20.

They were Afghans fleeing the war against the Taliban and wanted to claim asylum in Britain, according to the UK Border Agency.

'As I understand it, the bus pulled up, people went to get their bags and these two guys just sort of popped out of the luggage hold,' said Army spokesman Rebecca Clark.

Security at the Hampshire barracks, which is home to the Army Physical Training Corps, is high, with armed guards at the entrance.

The Afghans were apprehended by security staff and taken to Aldershot Police Station.

UK Border Agency officers went to the police station, discovered one of the refugees was under 18, and placed him in the care of social services.

The older man, whose age is not known, applied for asylum after he was caught and was released on bail to accommodation in the Leeds area while his application is processed.

Asylum applications typically take at least 56 days to process but Sian Freestone-Walker of the UK Border Agency said the time it takes varies greatly.

'Each application is very different and we have to take time to consider its merits,' she said.
'
It also depends on things like whether they appeal the decision.

'The man is in Leeds because applicants go to wherever there's a bed available.'

The youth's exact age had not been determined but he was in his late teens and would be allowed to remain in the country until he turned 18.

Then he would have to apply for asylum or leave the country.

Yes, and I wonder which of the latter it will be?

It seems absolutely mad that in another time and place, these soldiers might have been engaging these men in combat - then they're simply allowed to wander in to the country and stay. Who knows who they are or what they want?

It reminds me of another incident which demonstrated the insanity of current policies; in late 2008 it emerged that a family of Afghan asylum seekers were living in a 7 bedroom house worth £1.2 million - and the council were paying £170,000 a year in rent to keep them in such luxury.

Toorpakai Saindi, who has seven children, has been granted an estimated £400 a week in child and local tax benefits, while her landlord receives £12,458 a month because there is no other suitable property available.

Mrs Saindi, who has four sons and three daughters aged eight to 22, approached Ealing Council in west London in July after being made homeless. The authority has a legal obligation to find her a seven-bedroom home.

The mother, who came to England from Afghanistan seven years ago, said: "I always thought the housing benefit was a lot, but I'm told that is what it is for homes like this here."She added: "It's a lot of money, but the council pay it. This is their problem. I don't know why they pay so much."The council says both the benefit and rent payouts are set by the Labour government.

Her son Jawad Saindi, 20, said although it felt like they had won the lottery, his mother complains that the house is too big to clean.

"If someone gave you a lottery ticket would you leave it? No. You take what you get given," he said."It's not that we wanted this big house - my mum is not happy because she has to clean all of it. The first day we moved in here we got lost because it was so big."

Down the road, an Englishman who had served in the army for 12 years, including a tour of Afghanistan, was living rough in his car after being told his request for housing after being made redundant and homeless wasn't 'a priority'.

A British war hero who fought in Afghanistan is living in his car, while a migrant family of Afghans has been handed a £1.2million mansion.

According to the Sun, Corporal Marcus Kilpatrick, 31, who spends his nights in a sleeping bag in the back of a 12-year-old Land Rover, was told no council housing was available for him.

Marcus, who had served in Afghanistan and Northern Ireland, said: “I feel completely let down and unloved by my own country.”

Unemployed Marcus, originally from Norwich, sought help a week ago from Ealing Council in West London.

“I kept getting pushed from one person to another, or got told to come back the next day or the next, the paper quoted him, as saying.

“Eventually they just gave me a list of B&Bs, but each stipulated they wouldn't take anyone receiving benefits, he added.

Ironically, the report added, in the same neighbourhood a family of eight Afghan migrants were living in extreme comfort in a seven-bedroom £170,000-a-year mansion, which is paid for by the taxpayers.

Marcus, who served in the Army for 12 years and spent six months in Afghanistan with the 8 Close Support Company Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, said, “They told me it’s up to me to find my own accommodation and then return to their offices. But no one seemed capable of explaining to me how the system works. How can they justify giving a family of Afghan migrants a mansion and then say they cannot help me? It’’s not like I”m demanding a penthouse.”

I don't think 'insane' even covers it. What about giving Marcus a job in an elite, ex-army team of border guards?

I think most people would vote for that.