Group refused to give RNLI £200 because ‘it would be used to pick up migrants’
A fundraiser set up to raise money for the RNLI after a community group refused to give them £200 has collected hundreds of pounds in just 48 hours.
Christchurch Residents Association (CRA), in Dorset, voted to reject a plea for the funding, with some members claiming the cash would be used to ‘pick up immigrants’.
Nic Cicutti was so shocked by the decision that he set up the GoFundMe appeal.
He said: ‘I was stunned by some of the sentiment expressed. The RNLI are a fantastic group and should be supported in every way.’
The CRA had been asked for the donation by a member but it was overwhelmingly refused in a show-of-hands vote.
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Some people said that they were voting on the basis the group could not afford the donation, not for any other reason.
Nic, from Brockenhurst, has organised the fundraiser on behalf of New Forest Together Against the Far Right. He said he was delighted with the reaction to the appeal so far.
‘There were over 200 likes on the post on one Facebook page,’ he added.
‘The positive comments far outweighed the negative, but it was still sad to see people saying the RNLI had become a ‘taxi service’ for illegal immigrants coming across the Channel.
‘When challenged by others saying that meant people could be left to drown, some said they didn’t care. I just find that absolutely despicable.
‘But I think the fact that we are so close to reaching our target of over a £1,000 in such little time shows that love will always triumph over hate.’
The fundraiser has topped more than £1,000 at the time of writing.
Over the last few years, the RNLI has faced accusations of helping migrants cross the English Channel by figures such as Nigel Farage, the leader of the Reform party.
The charity has repeatedly stressed that their mission is to save lives at sea and that they respond to callouts to boats in distress.
RNLI staff have received abuse on a number of occasions and there are regular protests at its headquarters in Poole, Dorset.
In a statement, RNLI said: ‘When someone is in trouble at sea and we are tasked by HM Coastguard, we will launch to help them – no matter who they are, where they come from or how they got into difficulty, as we have been doing for more than 200 years.
‘RNLI launches to rescue people in the English Channel made up 1.2% of our launches in 2024.
‘Everyone at the RNLI remains focused on our core purpose of saving lives at sea. We are incredibly grateful to our supporters whose generous donations enable us to continue saving lives at sea.’
Metro has contacted the Christchurch Residents Association for comment.