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| Scandal of the stowaways |
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| 22/01/08 |
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A BRITISH haulage tycoon pulled his lorries out of Europe for the first time in 30 years yesterday, declaring: "Illegal immigrant fines are putting me out of business."
Furious Derek Linch has called time on his Continental venture because stowaways can cost his drivers £5,000 in fines every time they are stopped coming back to the UK.
The businessman said he was forced to quit the European mainland because immigration chiefs were routinely slapping fines on his drivers despite them having no idea immigrants were sneaking on board.
The 58-year-old entrepreneur, from Romney Marsh, Kent, said the decision will cost his business � one of the largest independent hauliers in Britain � £400,000 a year. However, he said it was worth losing the trade to prevent his drivers from being branded criminals when they were simply doing their jobs.
He said: "The situation is out of control. In the last four years it has got worse. More and more people are desperate to get into this country."
The mogul had four vehicles working across Europe out of Dover but he says he has been forced to wind the operation up after one of his drivers was fined £5,000.
He said: "That was the final nail in the coffin. When you are fined for going about your business, it is not worth the aggravation. The way they treated the driver was like he was a criminal."
He revealed dozens of immigrants sneak on his lorries at night when drivers are asleep in their cabs in France awaiting the next train or ferry.
He said: "They go round picking which lorry to board before clambering aboard. There�s nothing the drivers can do. They check as much as they can but the illegals even jump on when the lorries are moving.
"It�s not right to fine us for that. We are not the border police. We�re just trying to make a decent wage at the end of the day."
He slammed the Immigration Service for boasting that they stopped 17,000 illegals from entering the country last year.
He said: "What about the 17,000 coming in they don�t know about? It�s time the Government got its house in order."
Freight Transport Association director Geoff Dossetter backed Mr Linch, saying: "The Home Office treats the transport industry with suspicion, believing lorry drivers are the cause of the problem rather than the victims."
It is estimated that tens of thousands of illegals enter the UK each year to join the 500,000 already here. Many of these arrive in lorries which have passed freely through French border controls.
Last year, it was revealed that 67,000 illegal immigrants had passed through the Red Cross camp at Sangatte, near Calais, before stowing away in UK-bound trucks and trains. At its peak, around 200 a day were making it into Britain this way.
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