Protestors plan Spalding march

Protesters who gathered in Boston to highlight problems with immigration have vowed the next stop will be Spalding.

More than 300 people attended the protest last Saturday, some holding banners such as ‘Free Us From The Shackles of Europe’ and ‘Get Back Our Country’.

Now the Boston Protest Group have bowed to pressure from residents in Spalding to hold an event in the town next year.

Organiser Dean Everitt said: “We are in the very early stages of arranging things but are looking at March. There have been several requests for us to do it and it’s time to come to Spalding now.

“Then if the Government and councils still won’t listen to us, we’ll take it to Westminster.”

Mr Everitt said he was delighted with the turnout in Boston, which was a static protest. He said: “It was a peaceful protest. There was no trouble at all.

“We even had a migrant worker in the crowd talking to protestors – it was a really good atmosphere.”

The protest was planned for last year but was cancelled after the borough council agreed to set up a task force.

A report on population change was published as a result, but campaigners said it had “not gone far enough” and the Government still needed to listen.

Protestors are planning a march in Spalding and Mr Everitt believes it can’t come soon enough.

Mr Everitt, said: “I am a landworker and it’s almost impossible for an English man to get work now.

“Migrant workers can afford 16-hour contacts on minimum wage and then be laid off for a day because several of them live in a house together.

“When they are out of work they gather in town centres drinking on the streets which upsets many people.

“The days of time and a half for overtime have gone – companies are making big bucks out of it.

“In 10 years time when our kids are looking for jobs there will be none.

“We need full-time jobs and until this is addressed we will keep raising awareness about it.

”Councils and the Government must pull together to look after our towns.”

Nick Worth, deputy leader of South Holland District Council, attended one of many scrutiny committee meetings in Boston to give input on the situation in Spalding.

He said: “I don’t think migrants cause that much of a problem in the Spalding area, but this is a democracy and so if campaigners want to come here and have a peaceful protest that’s fine.

“However, we would hope they speak to us and the police first so arrangements can be made for it to go off safely.”

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