Anti-deportation campaigners need to get real smart real quick. Patel is now considering deporting people with 6 month convictions. That’s petty theft, cannabis, minor offences like fraud.

In the context of #BlackLivesMatter and #windrush - the government response is to make it easier to deport people whose rights are being violated.
We need to work on this together - we cannot let this take place without a fight. Anyone who works on migrants rights, criminal justice reform, decriminalisation and a fair legal system needs to stand against this.
This is a two tier criminal justice system. Double punishment for people who live here, work here, have family here. One mistake punished twice. A lifetime in the UK overlooked because you smoked a joint or stole a purse. Rehabilitation no longer a consideration.
Patel is doing this a direct response to both successful campaigning and as a response to an incoherent strategy from activists so far. They know it will piss us off, they know they can do it. But the public can stop this if we make the right arguments.
Communities who will be most affected need to be centered and platformed. Journos need to start showing the kind of ppl who would be deported under these rules.
MPs need to ask the Government for evidence that this will resolve any of the issues they claim it will and that this is in public interest. It is not.
Unlike wave machines and jet skis - this feels like a real threat to me. Patel at her most lethal and maniacal.
Let’s be really fucking clear - Patel claims she is doing this for victims of crime. 6 month sentences often do not have victims or can be rehabilitated to stop further crimes. That’s why the sentence is low. Who is she doing this for?
And if there are severely traumatised victims - she is saying her criminal justice system doesn’t protect them and only the immigration system Either way, she’s plastering over her own failures by using migrants as political football.

More from Government

Let me take a stab at this after years of reporting on Marine One, HMX-1, Continuity of Government, etc. None of this is definitive, but it could help explain what folks are seeing:

1.) HMX-1, which flies the VH-3D and VH-60N 'White Top' helicopters used to move... 1/X


the President and VP around, those helos being called Marine One or Two when either is onboard, need to train. The urban landing zones, including WH and VP Residence, are not simple to get in and out of. So, crews need some currency training. They are not just tasked with... 2/X

moving POTUS and VP to get them around the region and to Andrews AFB for long-haul flights, they are essential to Continuity of Government operations. This means that if a threat were to emerge, they need to be ready to snatch POTUS and VP in minutes. This is partially... 3/X

why they have a full forward operating location at Naval Support Activity Anacostia, just 3 miles from the WH. As such, practice is important and considering the state of things, it is critical now more than in any recent memory. 4/X

2.) Considering what happened last week, including mobs of Trump supporters screaming in unison to hang the VP for doing what the constitution states, absolutely despicable in every way, security has been tightened just as it has been all over. Using the helicopters instead.. 5/X
The Government is making the same mistakes as it did in the first wave. Except with knowledge.

A thread.


The Government's strategy at the beginning of the pandemic was to 'cocoon' the vulnerable (e.g. those in care homes). This was a 'herd immunity' strategy. This interview is from


This strategy failed. It is impossible to 'cocoon' the vulnerable, as Covid is passed from younger people to older, more vulnerable people.

We can see this playing out through heatmaps. e.g. these heatmaps from the second


The Government then decided to change its strategy to 'preventing a second wave that overwhelms the NHS'. This was announced on 8 June in Parliament.

This is not the same as 'preventing a second wave'.

https://t.co/DPWiJbCKRm


The Academy of Medical Scientists published a report on 14 July 'Preparing for a Challenging Winter' commissioned by the Chief Scientific Adviser that set out what needed to be done in order to prevent a catastrophe over the winter

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