Children of RNLI volunteers bullied at school over migrant rescues

RNLI volunteers have been “accosted” in supermarkets and their children allegedly bullied at school as anti-migrant protesters become increasingly hostile over the charity’s work in the English Channel. A Portsmouth lifeboat crew leader said the children of two crew members had been harassed by fellow pupils because of their fathers’ volunteer work. In an email to a local councillor, the unnamed leader also said volunteers had been confronted while shopping and socialising in pubs. Most commented 1 Sonay Kartal defeats Elina Svitolina to reach Wuhan Open semi-finals Tennis 15 comments The lifeboat service has faced years of escalating criticism because it responds to coastguard callouts to assist small boats in distress crossing the Channel. In February, counter-protesters met a demonstration by Poole and Bournemouth Patriots outside the RNLI’s headquarters in Poole Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images In one incident, a lifeboat crew was trapped inside its boathouse for two hours during a protest at Eastney harbour led by Daniel Thomas , the far-right activist who goes by the name Danny Tommo. Danny Tommo denies criminal damage after Channel boat ‘slashed’ Advertisement During the incident, RNLI volunteers from other stations were tasked with ensuring the safety of anti-migrant protesters who entered the sea, providing them with warming blankets and monitoring the group in case any got into difficulty. Top stories 1 US inflation hotter than expected as Iran war stokes fuel costs Economics Top stories 1 The housing benefits trap: when work just doesn’t pay Welfare Inquiry 2 Theo Paphitis: I bought a £100m business for £1 and two packs of Benson & Hedges Family Finances 3 Record fines for motorist victims of car cloning Family Finances 4 Premium Bonds are fun – until you realise what they are costing you Saving & Investing 5 Will Lyons: my vintage wine tour of South Australia Inspiration Despite helping those in need, images showing the faces of lifeboat volunteers involved in the protest and the rescue of a migrant boat that had spent 30 hours at sea were circulated online, alongside calls to identify them. One widely shared post on X urged people to “get their family”. A group of migrants come ashore at Dungeness, Kent, aboard an RNLI lifeboat in April 2023 Gareth Fuller/PA Wire The Portsmouth crew member said the abuse escalated rapidly after the Eastney protest. Poole Old Lifeboat Museum was closed because of abuse directed at volunteers, while Portsmouth lifeboat station was taken “off service” , leaving the city without a lifeboat. He said: “Crew have had their names published on the internet, we’ve had spotters hanging around the station and suspicious vehicles parking up when we go out on training. We’ve had numerous messages left at the station. An RNLI lifeboat carrying migrants arrived at Gosport this month Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images “But, perhaps the worst is the personal abuse we’ve had in the city. Crew members have been accosted in yacht clubs, pubs, and even the Co-op. The children of two of my crew have been bullied in school because their dad is in the RNLI. Some crew have been called cowards and traitors to their faces.” Advertisement Shortly after the protest, an RNLI volunteer in New Quay, Wales, had his car vandalised in what is believed to have been a linked attack. How Danny Tommo came face to face with migrants in the Channel The RNLI in Poole, Dorset, has filed a planning application in order to rebuild its entrance after unauthorised people gained access to the lifeboat support centre. The application said: “There have been physical security breaches where an unauthorised person has slipped into this restricted building by following closely behind (tailgating) someone who has legitimate access.” The identities and motives of the intruders have not been made public. Daniel Thomas followed the RNLI lifeboat in his own vessel before slashing it with a knife last month The scale of abuse was revealed to Portsmouth city council, where a cross-party group led by the Liberal Democrats passed a motion condemning the abuse and seeking to award Portsmouth lifeboat station the freedom of the city. Advertisement The motion read: “Generations of volunteers have served our coastal city, leaving the safety of the shore when the call comes and continuing a tradition of courage, service and selflessness of which this city should be immensely proud. Thomas stood in the water livestreaming the rescue of 140 migrants brought into Portsmouth harbour Barry Williams/PA “At the heart of that service is a simple and enduring principle: when somebody is in danger at sea, you go to their aid. Those who answer the call to save a life should not be asked to judge whose life is worthy of saving.” All Reform councillors voted against the motion. Emily Strudwick, the Reform group leader, said nobody should face threats while doing their job but added that residents opposing their work were “entitled to express that view”. Child and two women ‘crushed to death’ on Channel migrant boat Crews have faced abuse for several years because they have rescued migrants in the Channel , even though these callouts constitute only 1.7 per cent of the charity’s total. Of the 41,472 people who crossed the Channel in 2025, 2,353, or 5.7 per cent, were rescued by the RNLI. Advertisement The RNLI responds to small boats only when tasked by the coastguard, which co-ordinates with Border Force to reach vessels at sea. This usually happens when a boat is in distress and specialist rescue skills are needed. Police were deployed in Gosport on October 5 as more than 100 migrants arrived at Fort Blockhouse Paul Jacobs/pictureexclusive.com Peter Sparkes, the charity’s chief executive, said there had been “deliberate misinformation and a misunderstanding” about RNLI tasking and how it responded in the Channel. He said: “Sadly, as a result, some of our volunteers and staff have been the subject of online and, in the worst cases, physical abuse. “The RNLI’s people represent the very best in our society, they selflessly give up their time to keep others safe. Yet they and their families are being threatened by those who would hide behind a balaclava or a keyboard. Their action, in contrast, is wholly unacceptable in a civilised society.”