Rob Horgan
THE woman behind a 500,000 signature petition to close UK borders spends most of her time living in Spain.
Online campaign organiser Tina Reeves has come under heavy criticism after she conducted a TV interview from her home in Jaen.
Reeves’ petition to force ministers to debate border control has gained a lot of support following the ISIS attacks in Paris.
However it has now emerged that Reeves spends at least half of her time at her Spanish bolthole and has done so for the past 26 years.
In fact, the 62-year-old is married to a Spanish farmer, Pepe Garcia.
However, the irony is lost on the mother-of-two.
“I don’t think there is hypocrisy,” she said. “I worked in Spain initially, many years ago, before it joined the EU, and I didn’t need open borders to allow me in.
“To the Spanish government I would be an immigrant but not to my friends or children. I can’t see the argument.”
No surprise to find she’s a UKIP shill.
Where does it say she is a UKIP shill? Or do you know something no one else does? Or have you been on a lunchtime bender? I like most people think enough is enough. Borders need to be closed, immigrants/asylum seekers need to be rehomed in the continent they come from, not halfway around the world. The UK needs to look after their residents first.
I am a UK resident & would never vote for UKIP. So where does that leave you ‘banknote’.
Well, it leaves you without anyone to vote for Dave. Unless you want to revive the BNP, then you could vote for yourself.
You “can’t see the argument” Tina? Time to go to Specsavers dear.
I don’t understand why a British person spending a lot of time in Spain doesn’t have a right to speak up for her country and want to protect it especially when she has friends and family are in the UK.
I spend most of my time in Spain and strongly defend the UK and want to protect it. It is my homeland where my family live and where I care for my fellow British.
If the UK borders are closed when Tina happens to be in Spain, all the more courageous she is as she risks not being able to get back into the UK.
If Tina is being criticised because her politics are different from those trying to discredit her then say so, don’t somehow try and turn it into a campaign because she spends a lot of time in Spain.
I signed the petition and we retired here to Spain 12years ago, but we are still British and all our family are still there.
What the UKIP “masterbrains” haven’t quite realised is that closing the UK’s borders would hurt the UK far more than anyone else. It’s not just the millions in Britain who earn a living from tourists and visitors – around half our food and many essential medicines and materials have to be imported. By the way Big Dave, it’s been well reported that Tina is a UKIP fan – just look at her twitter stream.
We may have different opinions but the EU is an unmitigated disaster IMO just look at Greece and other Club Med countries in the crisis. It costs the UK far more than it receives I believe the UK pays approx £55 million a day to the EU but receives approx £37 million back a net outflow of £18 million, how daft is that when people are suffering within the UK in deprived areas?
Tourists will still visit the UK, imports will still happen, exports will still happen but with whoever we like as the EU countries will still need the UK as a major customer.
Thank goodness we’re not in the Schengen (open arms and drug smuggling) and the sooner we’re out of the EU and properly protect our borders and finances the better. BTW I’m not a UKIP voter but an OUT voter in a referendum.
Mike, you complain that the UK donates more money to the EU than it gets back. To be consistent you should also complain that Spain gets much more out of the EU pocket than it spends. And you should complain that part of this extra money is going into highways and other infrastructure that you are using here as a foreign guest of Spain.
‘Banknote’ Why would i look at her twitter account, i was commenting on the article above which does not mention ‘twitter’. I have no interest in looking at anyone’s twitter account. As i have never voted for UKIP, i just ignore them. If you have a problem with UKIP i suggest you do the same.
All the expats on here complaining about people doing exactly what they are doing. You are in a foreign country getting benefits for living there but do not want people to go to the UK and do the same. Bit hypocritical I think
Bravo, you have got the wrong end of the stick – again. The vast majority of British people living/spending long periods of time in Spain are completely self supporting, spending their money in the local economy and their health treatment is either paid for by a reciprocal arrangement with the NHS or they have taken out private health insurance as we have. They are not getting monetary benefits, (like what? I am not aware of any in Spain) just the benefit of being able to live freely in Spain. How on earth can you compare this to the refugee situation?
Thank you for the Bravo, mush appreciated but I do not have hold of any stick. The conclusion you jumped to when I mentioned benefits was good old money and from your comments it seems you hold that very dear.
By benefits I meant that you can choose where you live, what you eat, good weather and hopefully good health.
Now you being reasonably comfortable maybe sat in the sun enjoying a nice glass of wine have decided that allowing people that have had their homes takes away, no medical treatment, bullied, tortured and starved should not get a chance.
What do you suggest …. Euthanasia maybe.
It is not about money it is about caring.
Stefanjo,
your heart’s in the right place but you do spout a lot of theoretical b/s. My father in 1924, at 16 went to work in the Italian Alps in a 5 star hotel in Strezza. He was only able to do that because of a very simple system that operated at that time between Italy and the UK. If an Italian got a job in the UK it entitled a Brit to get a job in Italy – simple and effective for both countries. Whilst he was registering at a government office in Strezza he over heard an Italian from the south being told to ‘go back to where he came from, we have no work for you’.
That’s the system that should be in place all over the EU. If you want to pay child support for Poles who have 8 or 9 children, if you want to pay Romanian gypsies who have no intention of ever working, let alone legitimately for a living – you pay not me.
I have heard,a,rumor that Spain is contemplating closing its borders due to a drastic drop in IQ around its coasts during recent decades.
The petition reads: “In February 2015 Dr Shea, NATO’s Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Emerging Security Challenges, warned there would be IS jihadists on the refugee boats. IS also threatened to flood Europe with 500,000 jihadists.
“Allowing uncontrolled immigration and taking in these refugees potentially endangers the entire UK population. At any other time in our history this would be tantamount to a declaration of war and borders would be closed.”
I would imagine that the purpose of this petition is for the reason stated above i.e. to close the borders to refugees, not completely close the borders to absolutely everyone – a commonly held misconception often used to deliberately discredit this woman. Helen, why on earth would she, a British passport holder, ever have a problem gaining entry into the UK?
Whether you like it or not, many people are very worried and they have every right to express that fear particularly after last Friday’s atrocities in France. Get this one wrong at your peril.
The EU cannot and will not be able to survive in its current form, it is a case of reform or die. Don’t be fooled, it is not only Brits who are disillusioned with it, citizens of other member states are too and it now looks as though the Schengen’s days are numbered, at least for Spain, Greece, Italy and Eastern Europe.
We are now in a fast moving situation with things changing every day. We (UK) will probably be bombing the hell out of Syria very soon and the EU will have to reinstate border checks for security reasons. Last Friday changed everything for good.
Oh dear “bombing the hell out of Syria very soon”. Because this policy has worked so well over the last few years in the Middle East….remind me of the definition of madness again?
Don’y often agree with you Squiddy, but you got that one right.
So, who do YOU think Big Dave should vote for Stuart? As for Tina’s myopia. Well, that speaks for itself.
The war in Iraq was a huge mistake, we all know that and Tony Blair is the most hated person in Britain because of it. You could argue that it created a power vacuum that has been filled by hate fuelled IS psychopaths but we are where we are, not where we want to be, we can’t turn the clock back. The definition of madness would be to sit back, do nothing and not support the French and the Americans. Or perhaps you think the French are wrong and we should have a cosy chat with ISIS and try to reason with a group of barbarians who have no sense of reason.
Jane G: You REALLY believe this situation is markedly different from Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan?
And you REALLY believe bombing the rubble in the desert will produce a different result from all the other rubble bombing? It’s too easy to wave white feathers at people who have other ideas than drone warfare.
If every European country as the petition suggests for UK will close it’s border, then Greece will soon become a failed state like Somalia. Every day between 7,000 and 11,000 refugees are crossing the German border. Where do you think these people should stay, if every state on the Balkan route closes it’s border? The majoity of these refugees are from Syria and they fear bombs more than the mediterranean sea or a European border patrol. If UK has signed the UN refugee agenda, then the UK as any other memberstate is obliged to take it’s fare share of refugees. I am not willing to accept that a UK or French or German life is superior to a Syrian life. These refugees are fleeing from the Daesh terrorism as well as from Assad bombs, UK, French and Russian air strikes. Most Islamic terrorism is homegrown, not imported. Instead we export thousands of 3d generation young Islamist terrorists from France, UK and Germany into Syria. Is Europe a humanitarian society or a band of shopkeepers?
Excellent point Wolfgang – these attacks have been organised by home-grown terrorists, despite the UK media and Farage trying to convince us it’s all down to the refugees. However it’s clear that external border controls need to be enforced, as it seems that certain terrorists have used the chaotic migration route to enter the EU. Ironic that a welcoming and controlled migration route for refugees would have stopped that!
JL, and your solution is? I’m sure you’ve got all the answers and of course you never assume anything do you?
Sorry Jane unlike you I do not have all the answers.
Wolfgang,
funny you should use the term ‘a band of shopkeepers’ – you should have used the term ‘nation of shopkeepers’ then it would have been clear that you were referring to and insulting the British – wat een lulletje.
After WW11 ,you Germans encouraged the Turkish Muslims and Christian Greeks and Cretans to come to Germany to do the jobs that you Germans felt were beneath you. You did’nt do this for any humanitarian reasons but from pure greed and self interest and unlike you I freely admit that the British elite did the same re. Pakistanis/Indians and West Indians. Again unlike you I can admit that there were many Brits who treated these immigrants with incredible rascist brutality.
I have worked in both the Netherlands and Germany and I saw first hand the same Aryan rascist attitudes, remember English you are also Aryans.
Whether you can put your hubris to one side and admit it or not Wolfgang, your frau Merkel opened her mouth without consulting any other EU members, clear arrogance and said – come one come all – you created the problem, now you solve it.
I saw clearly the rascist attitude of so many Dutch and Germans , especially Dutch and German companies towards decent Muslim people that I am surprised there have been no massacres in either the Netherlands or Germany as has happened in Paris. I should’nt leave out The Flemish, so many of whom belong to the Flemse Blok and where so many of the Jihadists come from – you reap what you sow.
Start,
I would never use a term like ‘nation of shopkeepers’ as I am well aware that also in the UK there exists a lot of people with empathy for refugees. This is also true for Germany. Yes here do exist also racists like Pegida or AfD, but they are still a minority. Most people here have learned our lessons from the 3d Reich, where the Jews had badly been treated as a minor race. We are not going to repeat that with ‘Arabs’ or ‘Muslims’. Please remind, the Germans and the UK do not only share Aryan routes but Roman routes as well. Meanwhile for the German nation I would say, we also have a lot of Turkish, Italian, Kroatian, Korean, Iranian and whatever routes and this has become an asset for our nation. Hopefully you can say the same for your nation. Perhaps this climate is the reason why the mayority of the muslim Turkish and the Christian Greeks that came to Germany have no feeling of impoverished underclass. Just yesterday Cem Özdemir, a native born Tukish, was reelected as leader of the Green Party. Michael Vassiliadis, a native born Greek is the leader of the powerful Chemical Union. Referring to Mrs Merkel, I am sorry that you support conditions like in Calais, which had also occurred on the Balkan route.
It´s a matter of fact that the aim of the EU is to create an european western nation able for to compete with USA and Japan. This is an appealing idea for the continental western Europeans whose crowd psychology longs the times of the Pax Romana. An epoch in which the people lived comfortably, but submitted to the despotic authority of the roman imperator. This idea is repulsive for many britishs , according with the book “Crowds” of Lebon.
Another vision is to see the EU as a new release of the Carolingian Empire, the sacred Roman Germanic Empire, the Napoleonic empire or the III Reich. Nowadays we can speak of the IV Reich.
We mustn’t forget that all the history of UK have been presided for the will of to preserve his independence against the continental powers.
In few words, I think that is absolutely understandable that UK wants to reduce her interdependence with respect the EU.It means that UK wants to save her soul…but this have a price label.