Gosport residents worry that Haslar Marina will be the site of more migrant landings
Concerned residents of Gosport are worried about the safety of their community
Residents of Gosport say they fear more migrant landings are coming after 149 people came ashore at Haslar Marina on October 4.
Those who gathered at the marina to hear Reform UK spokesperson Zia Yusuf speak voiced concerns about security near the military site at Fort Blockhouse and about the disruption of police operations on their doorstep.
Mr Yusuf spoke this afternoon from Haslar Marina, where he said that Prime Minister Andy Burnham was “inciting disorder” by allowing migrants to land on British shores, and that the introduction of a dispersal order across Gosport was “effectively martial law”.
Peter Wroe, from Bridgemary, and who is the secretary for Reform Gosport, was there to listen to Mr Yusuf’s speech and support his message.
“It’s dangerous having them so close to the military,” he said.
“I was in the Navy for 24 years, and I could not get near Fort Blockhouse without an ID card. Now they are just allowed there. It’s dangerous.”
Mr Wroe’s wife, Karen, said: “Zia has lived a life, he has had a job, not like Andy Burnham.
“I’m concerned about the number of Iranians coming off the boats, especially after what happened at the RAF base, and the Americans have taken their bombers out.”
Home Office data shows that from July 2025 to July 2026, 11 per cent of people crossing into the UK on small boats are from Iran.
Steve Connelly, who organised the protest in Gosport on October 4, said he had concerns about “dangerous individuals” coming into the country to cause harm.
He said: “We are very concerned parents and grandparents. So, I started Hampshire Resistance in January. I started that patriot group to help other patriots low on numbers, because numbers count. If suddenly you get 200 people protesting, that's extra resources, extra police, more money out of the budget of that particular council, money out of the budget of the lefty government'.
“Last night, we had two boats coming into Haslar. The protest was to stop them coming here. When we did it before, we did succeed because they did not want to bring the coaches in. Unfortunately, Gosport did not have that result last night.
“But I will say this: when the patriots come together and do two separate protests, one side of the Haslar Marina bridge and the other side outside the Blockhouse entrance, we did make an impact because we caused disruption on both sides all night long with every single resource from around the country.”
Mr Connelly said he received intelligence from a ‘patriot group’ at 3pm on October 4 that migrant boats would be landing in Gosport. The boats reached Haslar Marina after 10pm that night.
Mr Connelly said he had received information that more boats are due to land at Gosport, and that he is “preparing” another protest if more migrants come ashore at Fort Blockhouse.
“I am very, very worried this will keep happening,” he said.
Councillor Paul Carter, who represents Bridgemary on Gosport Borough Council, said: “I'm a bit worried about this happening again in Gosport, especially Blockhouse, it's a prime example. They managed to bring in two lifeboats full of 140 illegal migrants, and they managed to disembark them into an ex-MOD base. It's almost a prime location for them.
“The Home Office has told nothing to the council here about what was happening here in Gosport, and that is the most frustrating thing as a councillor. How can I go out to my community and say, "This is what is happening," and try to get rid of some of that misinformation?
“I've had a lot of conversations, especially with residents in the flats here on the Gosport waterfront. There's a lot of worry, this is a very deprived area. There's a lot of worried folk, a lot of single moms, single parents that live within sort of hostel accommodation around this area.”
Councillor Carter also said that the anti-migrant protests that have accompanied the migrant landings are causing constituents worry. He said: “They are worried, to see not just protesters turning up, but also this sort of situation happening, with blue lights and police from all around the country coming. We need to try and alleviate some of those concerns.”