A senior Tory MP took a swipe at pop star Lily Allen as the row over child migrants from the Calais “jungle” intensified.
Monmouth MP David Davies warned against misplaced sympathy after unaccompanied youngsters arrived in the UK on Monday, some of whom appeared to be in their very late teens. He also sought to defend his plea for British authorities to check their dental records.
The singer was attacked on social media earlier this month when she broke down in tears and apologised “on behalf of our country” when she visited the camp.
“We must not be naive about this. It’s no good Lily Allen turning up with tears in her eyes and all the rest of it - we need to be quite hard-nosed here,” Mr Davies told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.
The award-winning singer visited the camp with charity Help Refugees to raise awareness of Europe’s refugee crisis. In her discussion with a 13-year-old boy from Afghanistan, she said sorry for Britain’s military action in the country.
Friends flocked to defend her from abuse over Twitter, including fellow London musician Fryars who said she had offered to house a refugee in her own home.
Mr Davies told the Today programme people “will say what they need to say to get in”.
“When I was in the camp in Calais there were caravans with notices on saying ‘Come here, we will coach you in what to say to get into the UK’,” he said.
He added: “People in Britain, I think, want to help children but we don’t want to be taken for a free ride either by people who seem to have got to the front of the queue even though they clearly look, in some cases, a lot older than 18.”
The British Dental Association (BDA) said demands by Mr Davies for testing on those heading to Britain from the jungle refugee camp was “inappropriate and unethical”.
