Nadine Dorries, a former nurse who last month ditched the Conservative Party for Reform UK, was grilled on Question Time on BBC One on Thursday about immigration
Nadine Dorries — who quit the Tories for Reform UK — squirmed under pressure last night as she was grilled about immigration on BBC’s Question Time.
The audience on Thursday night audibly laughed when Ms Dorries struggled to answer Labour MP Stephen Kinnock’s questions about how exactly she and Reform would tackle immigration. After she was introduced at the start of the programme, filmed this week in Swindon, Wiltshire, Ms Dorries, 68, began with a ramble about her new political party — but the camera cut to the shocked expressions among the crowd.
But Mr Kinnock, 55, cut in to ask Ms Dorries: “What is the plan then? What would leaving the ECHR (European Convention on Human Rights) do to international corporation? Do you think it would help or hinder?”
The former culture secretary had argued the ECHR is preventing the UK from “controlling its borders” but, when faced with Mr Kinnock’s questions, she hesitated and was unable to offer a structured response. Ms Dorries, who left the Tories in September, muttered: “I don’t… I… When it comes to our borders…” At this point, the crowd in Swindon were heard chuckling.
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Ms Dorries tried to continue: “Well, help or hinder is irrelevant… Help or hinder is totally irrelevant. Our job is to protect our borders. We are paying I think it around £4billion every year on asylum hotels at the moment, that’s just on asylum hotels.”
Yet, the mum of three had criticised the ECHR minutes earlier in the debate show. She had said immigration will only ever be challenged is if Reform UK are ever elected into power.
“Reform are the only party who have a plan in stopping illegal immigrants coming to our shores. You may laugh, but you won’t when Reform is in government,” Ms Dorries, now a newspaper columnist, said. It was this statement that led to Mr Kinnock biting back, as the Minister of State for Care took Ms Dorries to task about her party’s plans.
Immigration continues to a controvesial issue in the UK and Ireland, where on Tuesday night protests became ugly following allegations an asylum seeker had raped a young girl. A police van was set alight amid the disorder near Dublin.
And so immigration was once again a topic on Question Time, during which journalist and broadcaster Mariella Frostrup expressed how she felt the UK had lost its compassion. Later in the discussion around migrants, Mariella — herself of Irish and Norwegian heritage — had said: “I just don’t know when we started dehumanising people. I find it really shocking,” comments which led to applause from the studio audience.