Illegal migrants are being given free arts and crafts classes and English lessons while they wait to be deported. A £260 million contract to run removal centres at Gatwick Airport stipulates that migrants must be offered these perks, which also include a so-called "welfare buddy" to help them adjust. The British public has had enough of this burning of taxpayers' money — especially given that the government has still failed to stop the small-boat crossings, while migrant crime continues to spread. Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform UK party, has also warned that the number of Palestinian migrants arriving across the English Channel has surged by 1,000 percent.

Under an eight-year contract with public services provider Serco, Gatwick’s Immigration Removal Centres also give detainees the chance to earn £1 an hour for cleaning, serving food, and managing the gym. According to documents seen by The Sun,

the contract offers acrylic painting classes, a board games room, and IT lessons for migrants.

The people running the removal centres must also run diversity and equality committee meetings every month, and appoint an advisor to help with these issues.

In August, The Sun also reported on the centre at Heathrow Airport, where

thousands of pounds are being spent on hiring staff to teach ballooncraft and floristry to migrants — some of whom are convicted criminals awaiting deportation. In addition, the centre was advertising for painting and hairdressing instructors, as well as a gym manager.

The four positions, along with a vocational training tutor, came with a combined annual salary of £165,000. At the time, Home Office minister Seema Malhotra announced that the department had requested the roles be scrapped.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp fumed at such wasteful use of taxpayers’ money, calling the art classes „absurd,” and calling for an end to the „woke nonsense” – according to the Exxpress news site. He said: „Illegal immigrants should be on the first plane out, not getting art classes. Taxpayers’ money is being wasted on this nonsense.

He added that

„the Conservatives plan to come out of the European Convention on Human Rights to enable the urgent deportation of 150,000 illegal immigrants and foreign criminals each year. The Government must stop messing around with woke nonsense and concentrate on deporting those with no right to be here.”

The removal centres at Brook House and Tinsley House have been run by Serco since 2020, holding people while they await deportation or while their immigration status is being determined. Foreign prisoners are also transferred there sometimes before being returned to their home countries after serving part of their sentences. Home Office data showed that the average stay at Brook House is 6.7 weeks, and 5.1 weeks at Tinsley House.

Terrorists Could Be Entering the UK Across the Channel

The above case also highlights the deep flaws in Britain’s migration policy, but the biggest challenge remains the government’s continued failure to stop the surge of illegal migrants crossing the English Channel.

Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform UK party, has warned that Britain stands on the brink of another major national security crisis after data on small-boat crossings revealed a shocking trend. Speaking on GB News, Mr. Farage said that illegal crossings by Palestinians had “soared dramatically” over the past year — rising by a staggering 1,000 percent — and added that “we have no idea whether any of the young men entering Britain have links to Hamas.”

Nigel Farage issues huge warning as Palestinian boat crossings to UK ‘increase 1,000%’ https://t.co/EtVWTBE4Nr pic.twitter.com/cQ8rAXNLdE

— Vote Reform and Make Britain Great Again! (@drumspares) October 14, 2025

– “This is a security risk. The number of Palestinians crossing the Channel is climbing fast — the figures this year have gone through the roof,” he said. “Add to that the sheer number of asylum claims now being made by Palestinians in this country, and the government boasting about the number of Palestinian students coming in — and the picture becomes even clearer.” Mr. Farage wenmt on:

“I have no idea who these young Palestinian men are who arrive on these boats or in the backs of lorries, but I can tell you there could easily be Hamas-style agents among them, trying to slip away before the IDF catches up with them. This is a security risk.”

He described the issue as a “difficult debate,” but insisted that certain types of crimes and offences are more common among certain nationalities — and that the government must take this into account.

As is well known, migrant crime has caused mounting tension across Britain in recent months. There have been repeated mass protests, and the number of offences committed by migrants continues to rise. The most recent case, when a migrant stabbed a mother-of-two to death at the asylum hotel where she worked, has sent shockwaves across the nation. According to press reports say the migrant had been watching the woman while she worked in the kitchen and at the food service area, then followed her when she left for home.

At the railway station, the Sudanese man stabbed her 23 times with a screwdriver, leaving her to bleed to death at the scene. The killer was later seen “dancing and laughing, clearly excited about what he had done” back at the hotel.

According to media reports, there had been no previous conflict between them, except for one minor argument over some „broken biscuits.”

Meet Rhiannon Whyte. She was killed by a Sudanese migrant living in the taxpayer-funded hotel where she worked.

Deng Majek, 19, stabbed her 23 times with a screwdriver – over a packet of biscuits. He then laughed & danced as she bled to death.

She leaves behind a young son.🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/84ZPvQOeBd

— Peter Lloyd (@Suffragent_) October 14, 2025