#move'

Outrage as migrants set to move into former care home – using taxpayers' cash

AFP•GETTY

Up to 40 migrants are set to move into Ladesfield Care Home

Ladesfield Care Home was shut down in 2011 by Kent Council, which reportedly claimed it could not afford the £450,000 cost of restoration.

But up to 40 migrants aged between 16 and 18 are now set to move into the home after arriving in nearby Dover.

Nearly 500 furious residents have signed a petition against the refit, which was confirmed by council bosses last month.

Lynn Habgood, 55, said: “They couldn’t find money for local old people who paid their taxes, but they can for these people.

“It will be 100ft from a nursery, primary school and Age UK centre and we know nothing about the people who’ll be in there.”

GETTY FILE PICTURE

The care home was shut down in 2011

Peter Oakford of Kent Council defended the move, saying the council had a “duty of care” towards under-18s who arrive in Kent seeking asylum.

Last week it was revealed that the council cares for over 600 “unaccompanied minors” – up from about 240 last year – and faces a shortfall of £5.5million in care costs.

Oakford added: “These young people have often experienced traumatic journeys and have fled from extremely distressing situations and require our care and support.”

Locals had hoped the site would be knocked down to expand the local primary school rather than house migrants.

Victoria Madden, who has two children at the school, said: “Nobody’s spoken to us to allay our fears. We’ve just been told: ‘It’s happening, get used to it’.

“They’re not even assessed until they get to Ladesfield. It’s a holding facility – there’s no risk assessments.”

A spokesman for Kent Council insisted that the decision was a temporary measure and funding came from a “Government revenue stream”.

Truckers tell David Cameron to move holiday to Calais to see migrant chaos for himself

GETTY•VANTAGE NEWS

David Cameron is on holiday as thousands of migrants storm the Channel Tunnel

The Prime Minister has been invited to make a journey across the Channel by the Road Haulage Association after Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond chaired the emergency committee.

It comes as riot police fought desperate migrants pulling down fences and attempting to clamber onto trains destined for the UK.

One officer is in hospital with serious head injuries after he was hit in the face with a stone thrown by a Sudanese man.

The man was arrested and faces criminal charges.

RHA chief executive Richard Burnett said:”Without witnessing the mayhem at Calais first hand, neither the Prime Minister, nor his advisers can fully grasp the severity of the situation.

“I have therefore issued an invitation to David Cameron to travel with him across the Channel to see for himself the appalling conditions that drivers are facing.

“I made the journey five weeks ago and I have been back to Calais today to assess the current situation and to establish for myself the problems facing our drivers.”

Around 1,000 migrants were stopped outside the Tunnel’s security zone and another 700 were found inside it, according to a police source in Calais.

A Downing Street spokesperson confirmed Mr Cameron, who insists he is on top of the Calais crisis, was on holiday and that he would miss the Cobra meeting.

Mr Cameron, who is also due to visit Portugal and Scotland this month, had insisted he would remain “in charge” despite taking three holidays in August.

The scenes in Calais marked the largest group of migrants for a week who tried to storm the Channel Tunnel.

REX

Thousands of migrants tried to get into the Channel Tunnel in a bid to reach the UK today

My town is French, not British

Natacha Bouchart

There are continual intrusions into the secure zone surrounding the Tunnel despite 120 extra French police arriving to guard it.

The latest escalation of violence at the French border comes as France announced its plan to cut police in Calais and threatened to “let the migrants through” to the UK.

French politicians have renewed their calls for all of the migrants to be sent straight to Britain, where they will either claim asylum or disappear into the black economy.

VANTAGE NEWS

Desperate migrants attempt to storm the Tunnel on a daily basis

Natacha Bouchart, the Mayor of Calais, led demands for a renegotiation that would move back the UK border from Calais to Dover.

Calling for asylum camps to be set up in the UK, Ms Bouchart said: “The British are imposing their law on our border.

“My town is French, not British.”

The Treaty of Le Touquet, signed in 2003, allowed UK officials to carry out passport checks and other frontier controls in France.

But former minister Xavier Bertrand agreed with Ms Bouchart that it should be scrapped.

GETTY

Cameron is on holiday with his family while the migrant crisis continues to escalate

Referring to the Prime Minister, Mr Bertrand said: “Let the migrants go and invite him to conduct whatever policies he wants on his own island.”

Mr Bertrand has continually blamed UK labour laws and the black labour market for the Calais migrant crisis.

There are currently 5,000 illegal migrants sleeping rough in the Calais area, many in the camp known as Jungle II.

Migrants desperate to enter the UK play a daily game of cat-and-mouse with the French police as they try to storm into the Channel Tunnel.

As police figures suggested that as many as seven in ten migrants in Calais may be reaching the UK, Downing Street stressed the figures relating to migrants leaving camps in Calais did not mean they were all succeeding in reaching Britain.

REX

French police plan to cut back on police in Calais despite the escalating numbers of migrants

Some reports suggest that increasing numbers of migrants have given up on reaching the UK and have settled for a life in France.

“There is no evidence to suggest that all of those who lead camps in Calais reach the UK,” the Prime Minister’s official spokeswoman said.

“Indeed, there is anecdotal evidence to suggest that some will be seeking opportunities elsewhere in France or elsewhere in Europe.”

There were up to 4,000 Tunnel intrusions last week, and nine migrant deaths in the last month, according to Eurotunnel.

The company which manages the Tunnel also said its security staff has helped stop 37,000 migrants trying to enter Britain this year alone.

Rail traffic has been severely disrupted, with vehicle gridlock causing delays of up to 12 hours for lorries and holidaymakers.

VANTAGE NEWS

Migrants pulled down fences today in a bid to get into the Tunnel to enter the UK

Kent Police chief constable Alan Pughsley, who forwarded the data on to the parliamentary Home Affairs Select Committee, said: “They cannot be ascertain whether these migrants leave to go elsewhere in France, or whether they enter the UK.

“Either way, their figures identify a transient migrant population.”

He said: “The exact figure is difficult to establish due to the migrants using fake identities or giving false details to Border staff.

“The figures provided by the police and partner agencies can only account for migrants that are actually found during relevant searches. The actual figure of migrants entering the country therefore may be a lot higher.”

VANTAGE NEWS

An emergency Cobra meeting has been called to discuss the migrant crisis

The European Union (EU) has offered funds to help the French government cope with the growing numbers of migrants in Calais.

EU executive Commission spokesperson Mina Andreeva said: “We can provide technical assistance through the EU agencies and emergency funding” to France.”

She said the border incidents are “another stark example for the need for a greater level of solidarity and responsibility” among EU member states.

The Commission wants all member countries to participate in a scheme to relocate thousands of refugees from Greece and Italy.

Britain has declined to take part.

Tottenham set to make move for Dortmund midfielder Bender

DORTMUND, GERMANY – AUGUST 23: Sven Bender of Dortmund sits on the bench prior to the Bundesliga match between Borussia Dortmund and Bayer 04 Leverkusen at Signal Iduna Park on August 23, 2014 in Dortmund, Germany. (Photo by Christof Koepsel/Bongarts/Getty Images)

Each day we’ll bring you the very latest tabloid rumors as the biggest clubs around look to splash the cash to bolster their rosters. True or not, they’re always entertaining…

Pep Guardiola has given a huge hint that he could be heading to Manchester City next season after admitting he could be ready to leave Bayern Munich when his contract runs out next June.

Tottenham have been told they must fork out £14m to land Lyon star Clinton N’Jie – even if the French club claims that is a lie.

Al-Arabi boss Gianfranco Zola reckons Mario Balotelli must quit Liverpool and take refuge in Qatar to revive his ailing career.

Remy Cabella has been urged to quit Newcastle – by his former boss. The French international, 25, struggled in his first season on Tyneside following his £7m switch from Montpellier.

Tottenham are ready to make a move for Borussia Dortmund midfielder Sven Bender after so far being rebuffed in an attempt to get Everton’s James McCarthy.

Angel Di Maria will feel the full fury of manager Louis van Gaal – by being made to sweat on his move to Paris Saint-Germain.

Meanwhile, Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu has no plans to offload any of the club’s players, which is a blow to United who are looking to sign striker Pedro.

Arsenal striker Chuba Akpom, 19, is set to join Sky Bet Championship side Hull City on a season-long loan.

Dimitar Berbatov has seemingly moved a step closer to joining Aston Villa after the former Spurs, Manchester United and Fulham striker cut short his holiday to finalize a deal in Birmingham on Monday.

Roma are trying to beat Liverpool to the signing of 22-year-old Paris St-Germain left-back Lucas Digne.

Anthony Stokes has won a recall to Ronny Deila’s Celtic squad for today’s league opener – despite being told his Celtic career is effectively over, with Hull and Sheffield Wednesday and Wigan all interested.

Angel Di Maria will finally end his horror spell at Manchester United by completing a £45m move to Paris St-Germain, allowing United to then make a move for £22m-rated Barcelona forward Pedro.

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez told Sergio Ramos he couldn’t let him leave the club and sign for Manchester United because if he did, he would be the next one through the door.

Chelsea are closing in on signing 21-year-old Augsburg defender Baba Rahman.

Aston Villa have made a £1m bid to sign defender Joleon Lescott, 32, from Midlands neighbors West Brom.

Chelsea are poised to sign defender Baba Rahman from FC Augsburg after submitting a £17.5m bid for the Ghana defender.

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers believes striker Christian Benteke, 24, will prove to be "a bargain" despite costing £32.5m from Aston Villa.

Boeing may move work abroad with Ex-Im future uncertain: chairman

Boeing CEO Jim McNerney in Everett, Washington February 17, 2012.

Reuters/Jason Reed

WASHINGTON Boeing Co (BA.N) Chairman Jim McNerney on Wednesday said the aircraft maker is actively looking at moving “key pieces” of its operations to other countries given uncertainty about the future of the Export-Import Bank, whose charter expired on June 30.

“We are now forced to think about this differently,” McNerney told hundreds of executives and diplomats during an interview hosted by the Economic Club of Washington.

McNerney, who retired as the company’s chief executive on July 1, said Boeing might consider sites in countries that offer export credits, but gave no details about which operations could be affected or when the company had launched its review.

The International Association of Machinists District 751, which represents more than 30,000 Boeing workers, blasted McNerney’s threat to move jobs overseas. “The only Boeing job that should leave this country is his,” said Jon Holden, who heads Boeing’s largest union.

America’s largest exporter, Boeing employs 165,000 people.

“Boeing’s fear mongering undermines the company’s remarkable products and it won’t win converts in Congress,” said Dan Holler, spokesman for Heritage Action for America, a sister organization of the Heritage Foundation that promotes conservative policy and is one of the most vocal critics of the bank.

The Ex-Im Bank was created during the Great Depression to lend money to U.S. exporters and their foreign customers. Its charter lapsed after conservatives in the U.S. Congress cast it as a promoter of “crony capitalism” for multinationals such as Boeing and General Electric Co (GE.N).

Hopes of reviving the trade bank were dashed on Tuesday as Congress moved toward a short-term extension of highway funding without a provision to renew the bank’s charter. That means the bank’s fate hangs in the balance through September or October, McNerney said.

Uncertainty about the availability of export credits is already weighing on sales of a range of Boeing products, including commercial satellites, according to sources familiar with the situation who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the business negotiations.

McNerney’s comments reflect U.S. industry’s growing frustration about deep partisan divides that have paralyzed Congress since the rise of the right-wing Tea Party in 2010 and the imposition of mandatory spending cuts that have hit revenues at the defense division of Boeing and other arms makers.

GE’s chief executive, Jeff Immelt, last month told the Economic Club his company would move manufacturing jobs to Canada and Europe if the Ex-Im bank closed.

McNerney said he was more worried than ever that Congress could fail to reauthorize the bank, given what he called the “very, very frustrating” refusal of a small minority of lawmakers to accept majority congressional support for the bank.

“People just playing politics – they’re not connected to the real world anymore,” McNerney said at the event, which was attended by the Russian, Dutch and Malaysian ambassadors.

McNerney, who led an effort to bring more manufacturing in-house after problems linked to the company’s strategy of outsourcing work on the 787 Dreamliner, said he was rethinking his efforts to keep manufacturing jobs in the United States.

“I’m beginning to think that maybe I made the wrong decision,” said McNerney, who led the company for 10 years.

Boeing recently signed a deal with major Japanese suppliers, giving them 21 percent of the 777X content, down from 35 percent for the 787.

Boeing’s main rival, Europe’s Airbus (AIR.PA), has opened manufacturing facilities in China and the United States in recent years.

(Additional reporting by Alwyn Scott and Lewis Krauskopf in New York; Editing by Richard Chang and Leslie Adler)

House, Senate move toward passage of transportation patch

WASHINGTON– The House and Senate are moving toward passage of a three-month patch to keep federal highway and transit aid flowing to states while lawmakers seek the right mix of policy and revenue to achieve a long-term transportation deal.

The House is expected to take up the short-term, $8 billion bill on Wednesday before leaving town for Congress’ August recess. The Senate plans to take up the House bill later in the week, but before a midnight Friday deadline when authority for the Department of Transportation to process aid payments to states will expire.

Lawmakers said they were loath to take up yet another short-term transportation funding extension — this will be the 34th extension since 2009. But Republicans and Democrats don’t want to see transportation aid cut off, and they are eager to pass an amendment attached to the extension bill that fills a $3.4 billion hole in the Department of Veterans Affairs’ budget. The money gap threatens to force the closure of hospitals and clinics nationwide.

Before taking up the short-term extension, Senate GOP leaders say they are determined to first pass their own sweeping, six-year transportation bill. The $350 billion bill would make changes to highway, transit, railroad and auto safety programs, but only provides enough funds for the first three years.

The bill also renews the Export-Import Bank, which makes low-interest loans to help U.S. companies sell their products overseas. The bank’s charter expired on June 30 in the face of opposition from conservatives, who call it corporate welfare.

Senate GOP leaders have been struggling to complete work on their long-term transportation bill before the August recess in the hope that the House would pass it and send it to the White House. But their Republican counterparts in the House have made it clear they won’t be hurried into accepting the Senate measure.

"The House also needs to make its voice heard and put forth its own priorities for such a significant piece of legislation," Rep. Bill Shuster, R-Pa., chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said in a statement.

It has been a decade since Congress last passed a 6-year transportation bill even though lawmakers in both parties generally support highway and transit aid. The difficulty has been finding the money to pay for programs in a way that doesn’t increase the federal deficit.

For decades, highway and transit programs were paid for with gas tax revenues and other transportation taxes and fees. But the federal 18.4 cents a gallon gas tax hasn’t been raised since 1993 while the cost of construction has risen. The gas tax brings in about $35 billion a year for highway programs, but the government is spending about $50 billion. President Barack Obama and many lawmakers say even $50 billion is far too little.

Congress could raise the gas tax, but lawmakers fear a voter backlash. Obama and House Republican leaders want to change corporate tax laws that encourage U.S. companies to park profits overseas and use the resulting revenue to fully pay for a 6-year transportation bill.

But there is no consensus on the details of the corporate tax changes, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said he’s skeptical they "can be shoehorned into a multiyear highway bill by the end of the year."