I can quite understand that the locals are concerned. I believe that there is no control over the migrants movements; they can come and go as they please and with potentially 500 young males roaming the area is naturally a cause of worry. I wonder how many will return to the barge at all or just disappear into the night never to be seen again.
Interesting how you say that there has been misinformation about what the migrants have been told they will get here...on that basis you'd think that they would phone home and tell others not to bother. Yet still they arrive.

It would be interesting to know how many can, and do, “phone home”. The problem though is that there seems to be an inexhaustible source of those willing to take the risks. I shudder to think how they raise the money to pay the gangs but imagine long held family land being sold or borrowed against. I have no experience in the counties of origin involved but I do elsewhere and know that families take on heavy debt to send a family member abroad in the expectation they will remit it back and then some. It often creates disasters.

Migrants refuse to stay in barge as they are scared of the water.

Ok how did you arrive here err by water.

I don't get the fuss over this barge it must pass all the safety regulations and from the pictures I have seen it looks no different to a hotel.

Time to tell these people this is your accommodation if you don't like it sleep on the streets we never asked you to come here.

It is only a matter of time before European countries realize that they cannot continue to honour their commitment to international agreements on migration. It will not be sustainable on any level.

Look at the chaos a few thousand illegal migrants have caused. That is the tip of the iceberg.

I keep saying it, and politicians, as usual, will take far too long to catch up.

Petty, cruel, pathetic, could not possibly be successful.

The Tories.

While this distraction continues there is a 166,000 backlog created by their ineptitude which they have no actual hopes of addressing.

And human trafficking? Prosecutions 50% down in 5 years.

Don't the tories actually need immigration, 0f course they do, they can feed on voters prejudices, it is the only thing they have left, the gutter.

The country needs immigration at the moment. We could not function without it.

Whether we will in the future remains to be seen. If we can find ways to get those who could work, but don’t, to work and to harness the possibilities of AI to our benefit then perhaps not.

What that would do in countries whose people want to come here, and how the global economy will impact it are big unknowns. Climate change is going to also produce migration flows.

All of which puts all politicians in a bind. Acknowledging we need immigration doesn’t win votes. That’s especially true of the Tories who see Farage’s shadow every day looming over their future.