Couple's relief as £6k fine for stowaway reduced

Peter Hughes and his wife Anne Lawton were facing a £6,000 fine before Angela Rayner intervened

A couple who were fined £6,000 after UK Border Agency staff found a migrant stowaway in their trailer have had their fine reduced following intervention from the deputy prime minister.

Peter Hughes, 75, and Anne Lawton, 78, from Droylsden, Greater Manchester, were fined for not checking their trailer, which was attached to their mobile home, before taking the ferry from Calais in May.

Mr Hughes contacted the office of his local MP, Angela Rayner, explaining he had no idea the young Sudanese man had climbed inside and he was not aware he had broken any laws.

He said Rayner contacted the Home Office before confirming last week that the fine had been reduced to £150.

The couple were fined for not checking their trailer as they boarded a P&O ferry

Mr Hughes said: "I'm just glad it’s all over with, it's not done us any good mentally."

A Home Office spokeswoman said: "We are fully committed to stopping people from illegally entering the country and cracking down on people smugglers.

"The Clandestine Entrant Civil Penalty Scheme aims to ensure drivers are taking every reasonable step to deter irregular migration and disrupt people smugglers."

While Mr Hughes accepted the reduced fine, he said there was "no notification anywhere" - from either Border Force UK or ferry operator P & O - that he was legally required to check his trailer before boarding the ferry.

He added: "l believe there should be a big sign at the port saying, 'have you checked your trailer'?

"I didn't even consider the possibility of someone getting inside my trailer, it was full."

A spokesperson from Rayner's constituency office said it had "provided support to Mr Peter Hughes in his appeal".

The BBC has also contacted P&O for a response.

'Totally unbelievable'

Mr Hughes said he hoped his experience, which had been incredibly stressful, would mean others were "more careful".

He said he believed the man had climbed into his trailer while he was parked at a supermarket near the Calais ferry terminal, with his wife still sitting in the vehicle.

"There are a lot of people that go to Europe who are of a similar age to myself and we're pretty savvy with most things," he said.

"[But] it was...totally unbelievable.

"It happened to us and we still don’t believe it happened to us."