The BBC
The government says social media platforms “clearly need to do far more” after it emerged a list purporting to contain the names and addresses of immigration lawyers was being spread online.
Initially shared on the Telegram messaging app – along with the phrase “no more immigration” – it has now begun appearing on other platforms.
Lawyers have told the BBC they have been advised by police to work from home, board up office windows and install fireproof letterboxes.
Jim McMahon, minister for Housing, Communities and Local Government, told the Today programme, on BBC Radio 4, that he was “concerned”.
One immigration lawyer on the list told the BBC she had been repeatedly threatened, and received messages on Monday from concerned colleagues, clients and members of the public telling her she was “on a hitlist”.
The Law Society of England and Wales said it was treating the list as a “very credible threat” to its members.
“This week has been a stark reminder that the anti-lawyer rhetoric has very real-world consequences for solicitors working tirelessly for their clients, access to justice and the rule of law,” said its president Nick Emmerson.
Read more
