Racist jibe heard on staff radio at asylum centre

An investigation has been launched after a racist message was reportedly "blasted out" on portable radios used by Home Office contractors at an asylum processing centre.

- Diane Taylor

The deeply offensive broadside, saying "fuck off you [N-word]s, go back to where you came from", was reportedly heard at the Manston processing site for small boat arrivals in Kent.

The Home Office and its contractors Mitie have condemned the language used.

It is understood a meeting was held last Friday at Manston to discuss the message, which has been condemned as racist and unprofessional. Because of the type of radios used, it is apparently not easy to identify who broadcast it.

A source working at Manston said: "It was about three in the afternoon when someone blasted [the offensive message] over the radios... I've never known a message like that go out on our radios before."

Home Office sources confirmed that, as a result of the reported incident, a planned upgrade of the contractor radios at Manston was being expedited. The new radios will allow messages to be traceable.