The drowning of 23 Chinese cockle pickers has lifted the lid on the grotesque exploitation and abuse of frightened immigrants.
These workers, smuggled into Britain illegally, were treated like slaves and this needs to stop.
Guilty verdicts handed down yesterday to gang master Lin Liang Ren and his partners in crime exposed this wicked trade and highlighted the fact our own immigration service turned a blind eye to what was going on. The hope is that some good will come from the Morecambe Bay tragedy.
A new law which is aimed at combating the worse excesses of gang masters comes into force this April, although thousands of migrant workers in Britain (legally), such as Poles herded into foodprocessing factories, will continue to suffer shocking exploitation.
The use of illegal labour is unacceptable and in memory of the dead cockle pickers the Government must ensure all workers are protected from exploitation.
The Government must also invest heavily in our immigration service to stop the steady flow of illegal immigrants into Britain, thus avoiding the opportunities for unscrupulous employers to exploit these people.
-Jim Slater, Hove
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