MADAM,

I have today (3rd September), read MP David Davies’s comments about the refugee crisis facing Europe after the tragic image of a drowned three-year-old Kurdish boy, went viral on social media.

In his comments published by WalesOnline he suggests that “most refugees are young men chancing their luck” to come here to work or claim benefits. What Mr Davies is describing is an economic migrant, and not a refugee. A refugee is a person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster.

These refugees are willing to ‘chance their luck’ and leave their homeland, friends and families, crossing hostile countries, knowingly giving their cash to gangsters to traffic them, in unsuitable boats, to European shores with no guarantee of survival to find a safe haven.

The UK can, and should, do more for these refugees. Instead, we get misleading comments from the likes of Mr Davies. Painting these refugees as economic migrants is all too common. It isn’t helped by those in public office who use such language when describing these unfortunate people. I hope Mr Davies will apologise for his unfortunate, but erroneous use of the English language.

Cllr Dale Rooke

(Mayor of Chepstow)