Express & Star comment: Why should we house terrorists?
Many readers of this newspaper will react in horror to the news that a convicted terrorist came within a whisker of being housed in this region.
The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has been jailed for terror offences and is the wife of a dangerous extremist.
Yet disgracefully, she was offered homes in Wolverhampton, Great Wyrley and Kidderminster after being turfed out by her local authority in London, who appeared to be keen to get rid of her.
The jihadi bride said that her human rights had been breached after she wasn’t offered a place in the capital – a ludicrous claim that was thrown out in a rare moment of clarity by judges in the High Court.
But the question remains, how is it that this despicable, hate-filled individual was almost forced upon the people of the West Midlands?
Scandalously, the region has become a dumping ground for London councils.
Using the excuse that there are not enough homes to cater for demand in the nation’s capital, the London boroughs appear to be quite happy to send their unwanted tenants up the motorway to the Black Country.
Undoubtedly, some of these families and individuals will come to the area with the very best of intentions. They will settle in and become a credit to the region. However, others – such as this woman – should have no place on our streets.
Whether it is down to insipid political correctness, twisted logic, weak Government, or a combination of all three, the UK has somehow become saddled with having to house and look after individuals who want to destroy our way of life. It is an issue that crosses political boundaries and has infuriated council leaders for years. What family would want to have this woman as a neighbour?
It is not as if there are plenty of spare homes available in the Black Country, where some local authorities already have significant waiting lists.
To make matters worse, in many cases the London councils don’t even bother to inform their counterparts in the West Midlands about the people they are relocating.
Theresa May has vowed to deal with the UK’s housing shortage.
But she also has a duty to address this scandal immediately.
