Reform UK’s Zia Yusuf has launched a scathing attack on the BBC after the public broadcaster invited multiple “asylum seekers” to sit in on Question Time’s immigration special.
The latest edition of the debate episode was filmed in Dover – ground zero of Britain’s migrant crisis.
On the panel was Dover & Deal MP and Migration Minister Mike Tapp, Tory MP for Bexhill & Battle Dr Kieran Mullan, Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper, Green Party leader Zack Polanski and Reform UK’s policy chief Zia Yusuf.
Speaking to GB News after the show, Mr Yusuf said he “could not believe” what he was witnessing.
Mr Yusuf said he ‘could not believe’ what he was witnessing
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GB NEWS
He told the People’s Channel: “When it first was clear that this was going to be an immigration special, some people on Twitter started ‘quote tweeting’ the Question Time account saying: ‘I bet they invite some illegals on’.
“They were obviously joking. In some cases, they were literally comedians making that joke… Then, staggeringly, that happened.
“There were two illegal migrants who’d come originally by small boat. The BBC were very open about that.
“One of them, their ‘question’ was him holding his smartphone and reading out what was a statement about how important it was that the United Kingdom did not withdraw from the ECHR… it was incredibly surreal.”
The Reform heavyweight continued: “How on earth it can be deemed appropriate that people who broke into this country illegally should have a seat at the table?
“In a political discussion about immigration, about illegal immigration on a BBC immigration special is so bewildering that in the car home, I genuinely had to sit there and just try to reassure myself that this did actually happen. I felt like I was on The Truman Show or something.
“Why are illegal migrants being placed in the audience and given the opportunity to go on soliloquies about, you know, about their stories?
“I was asked by Fiona Bruce, would you deport a man who said openly that he had come here originally from Afghanistan then come from France – which is not the same as coming from Afghanistan.”
One of the migrants revealed that his asylum application had been rejected by six other countries
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BBC QUESTION TIME
During the show, one of the migrants revealed that his asylum application had been rejected by six other countries before he came into Britain.
Mr Yusuf said: “It was put to me, would a Reform government deport him? And I said, look, you know, we’re always going to give her the same answer on this. If you came to this country illegally, yes, you will be deported. Absolutely.
“And there were sort of gasps in the audience, which obviously I don’t know how.
“By the way, this is another stunning achievement from the BBC. They managed to rig… an audience in Dover of all places – a seat that looks as if the General Election would happen tomorrow, I think Reform would take handily.
“How did they manage to stack up so many people who gave rapturous applause to Zack Polanski, talking about open borders and more immigration? The whole thing was incredibly surreal. I think it is frankly, a scandal.”
‘How did they manage to stack up so many people who gave rapturous applause to Zack Polanski?’ Mr Yusuf asked
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Asked by GB News whether the chaos was an example of BBC bias, Mr Yusuf encouraged viewers to watch clips of the episode online, before noting that he “could not believe this was happening in such an open and blatant way”.
He had earlier blasted: “It is a scandal that licence fee money is being paid to bring to air an ‘immigration special’ where people who literally broke into this country are getting to air their views.
“What’s next? On Budget day, is the BBC going to bring us the viewpoint of tax evaders? I don’t know where we go from here.”
A BBC spokesman told GB News: “As immigration continues to be a primary concern for people in the UK, Question Time held a special episode in Dover with panellists from across the political spectrum and a local audience with a range of views and experiences.
“Over 20 audience members asked questions and contributed to the debate – including two people with direct experience of the asylum system in the UK who have been granted refugee status.
“As immigration continues to be a primary concern for people in the UK, Question Time held a special episode in Dover with panellists from across the political spectrum and a local audience with a range of views and experiences.
“Over 20 audience members asked questions and contributed to the debate – including two people with direct experience of the asylum system in the UK who have been granted refugee status.”