Rupert Lowe, a former Southampton FC chairman, was elected as a Reform UK MP in 2022 but now sits as an Independent. He wrongly accused a charity rowing team of being ‘illegal migrants’
A charity rowing team was mistaken for “illegal migrants” by Rupert Lowe, a former Reform UK MP who now sits as an Independent.
Lowe had posted a photo on Instagram showing a boat near wind turbines off the Norfolk coast, captioned: “Dinghies coming into Great Yarmouth, RIGHT NOW. Authorities alerted, and I am urgently chasing. If these are illegal migrants, I will be using every tool at my disposal to ensure these individuals are deported. Enough is enough. Britain needs mass deportations. NOW.”
However, The Telegraph revealed that the vessel in question was actually an ocean rowing boat crewed by ROW4MND, a team of four raising money for motor neurone disease (MND) by rowing from Land’s End to John O’Groats.
The crew – Matthew Parker, Mike Bates, Aaron Kneebone and Liz Wardley – were contacted by the coastguard who asked if they could see a dinghy nearby. Mike Bates, a former Royal Marine and British record holder for solo rowing across the Atlantic, said it quickly became clear that the coastguard was referring to their own boat.
“I looked to my right and there was maybe a dozen individuals on the shoreline staring at us,” he said, reports the Express.
There were no migrants
After assuring the coastguard that they were not transporting migrants, the team continued their journey. However, a few hours later, they were contacted again when police requested a lifeboat to verify their identities.
Eventually, a mate sent Mr Bates a screenshot of Mr Lowe’s post, which he said provided them with “a moment of light relief”.
He added: “We found it hilarious. I’ve not been mistaken for a migrant before. The best comment was the one asking where the Royal Navy were when you need them. I’m a former Royal Marine, so the Royal Navy were on the boat.”
He went on to say: “But it was almost like a vigilante-style, people following us down the beach. They hadn’t twigged that we were parallel to the shore for hours and not trying to land.”
‘Resolve and resilience’
The team embarked from Land’s End on 25 July and initially headed north into the Irish Sea before poor weather forced them to halt at Milford Haven in Wales.
They then returned to Land’s End and started again heading in the opposite direction – an experience Mr Bates described as “about us showing resolve and resilience and hope”.
Their journey is merely the first of four challenges over four years. The group plans to row from John O’Groats to Land’s End next year, then from California to Hawaii in 2027 and New York to London in 2028, with an ambitious target of raising £57 million for MND research.
So far, ROW4MND have raised £107,515 for their cause.
Mr Bates declared: “We’re rowing for hope, we’re rowing to find a cure, and hopefully we’ll raise £57 million. We certainly will if MPs keep talking about us. Maybe Rupert will give us a donation.”