Andy Burnham Is ‘Dishing Out a Vindictive Punishment Beating to the Middle Class’ as He Tells All Parts of the Country to Take Migrants… And More Than 3,000 Arrive in Just 22 Days

Middle class areas will have to take in more migrants, Andy Burnham said last night.

The Prime Minister said he would make sure arrivals were not only placed in the ‘poorest communities’.

‘All parts of the country need to play their part,’ Mr Burnham added. His vow that more affluent families would have to accept asylum seekers near their homes came as the number of Channel crossings under his premiership passed the 3,000 mark.

Official Home Office figures confirmed that 230 people were aboard the record ‘mega-dinghy’ that was brought into Dover on Monday.

That pushed the total since Labour came to power – beginning with the day after the General Election in July 2024 – past the 80,000 mark.

In comparison with Mr Burnham, Keir Starmer’s first 22 days as PM saw 2,258 small-boat migrants reach Britain.

When pressed on where asylum seekers would be housed, the Prime Minister said wealthier parts of the UK would need to ‘play their part’.

Mr Burnham was asked on GB News about a 1,200-strong migrant camp being set up near the Oxfordshire village of Piddington, which locals fear would overwhelm the population of 400.

He said: ‘I will listen to what people are saying and respond to the concerns that they are putting forward.

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‘I do have to say, we cannot have a situation where it’s only the poorest communities in the country that receive all of the dispersal of refugees and asylum seekers. I do believe all parts of the country need to work, to play their part.

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Monday’s record-breaking mega-dinghy brought more people to Britain than a typical Ryanair flight. The boat was originally carrying more than 260 passengers, including children, when it almost sank.

When the overloaded boat – which was designed for a maximum of 40 – was battered by choppy waters, at least 30 people were thrown into the waters off the northern French coast.

One shocking image showed them in the sea before they were rescued by French police and gendarmes, who have a controversial policy of not intercepting most small boats in the water because they claim it could endanger those on board.

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