British far-right provocateur Katie Hopkins has been branded “despicable” by federal ministers after she claimed to be trying to wilfully breach hotel quarantine rules in Sydney, with the Border Force asked to “urgently review” her visa.
It comes after Ms Hopkins posted then later deleted an Instagram video where she claimed to be intentionally opening doors in hotel quarantine while naked and not wearing a mask, in an attempt to “frighten the s**t out of” workers delivering her meals.
She also claimed COVID lockdowns were the “greatest hoax in human history”, and was heavily critical of NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Victoria’s Daniel Andrews.
Reaction to the video was swift and furious, with the federal Labor opposition saying Ms Hopkins should never have been allowed in the country in the first place. It has been reported that she may have been flown in to film a reality TV show, but this has not been confirmed.
“This is grossly disrespectful to frontline workers who are only trying to keep us safe,” Labor’s acting home affairs spokesperson, Andrew Giles, said on Saturday.
Greens spokesperson for anti-racism, Mehreen Faruqi, called it “rage-incuding” and “a new low”, contrasting how Ms Hopkins had been allowed into the country while thousands of Australians overseas were still struggling to get home.
Labor MP Josh Burns called for the federal government to “cancel her visa and send her on the next plane out of Australia.”
In a statement to The New Daily on Sunday morning, federal home affairs minister Karen Andrews said she had ordered Border Force to investigate.
“It is despicable that anyone would behave in such a way that puts our health officials and community at risk,” Ms Andrews said of Ms Hopkins’ actions.
“I have directed Australian Border Force to immediately consider the facts of this matter and urgently review whether this individual is complying with the requirements of her visa.”
Speaking on the ABC’s Insiders program, deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce was also critical.
“I have no problem sending home someone who wants to flout our laws. If you want to do that, pack your bongo and get out of country,” he said.
Mr Joyce added, “I’m the one who wanted to send home Johnny Depp’s dogs”, referring to an infamous 2015 incident where he engaged in a long-running stand-off with the Hollywood actor, who brought his pets into Australia in breach of quarantine laws. hile filming a Pirates of the Caribbean movie.
TND contacted Ms Hopkins for comment. In her Instagram videos, filmed inside a Sydney quarantine hotel, she has referred to her stay as “Oz-Catraz” – seemingly a reference to the prison Alcatraz.
.@Channel7 and @BigBrotherAU should immediately cancel the arrangement to have Katie Hopkins appear on TV in front of Australian families.
And @ScottMorrisonMP @karenandrewsmp should cancel her visa and send her on the next plane out of Australia #auspol
— Josh Burns (@joshburnsmp) July 17, 2021
Ms Hopkins, a former newspaper columnist and TV host, has regularly courted controversy after numerous incendiary comments with far-right views on race and immigration. In 2017, she called for a “final solution” after the Manchester Arena bombing attack. She has also compared migrants to “cockroaches”, called for gunships to be used to block migrant boats, and was detained in South Africa for “spreading racial hatred”.
In June 2020, she was permanently suspended from Twitter for “violations of our hateful conduct policy”.
There are currently several online petitions calling for Australians to boycott the television network which is broadcasting the reality TV show in which Ms Hopkins is said to be appearing.
Mr Giles was angry that Ms Hopkins had been given a spot in hotel quarantine in Australia while many Australians were blocked from entering or leaving the country due to border closures.
“The decision by Mr Morrison’s Government to allow Ms Hopkins into the country is particularly painful for the 35,000 Australians who remain stranded overseas, including Australian children trapped in India without their parents,” he said.
“Ms Hopkins should have never been allowed into the country, and now that Ms Hopkins is openly breaching quarantine restrictions Mr Morrison must take responsibility for his failure.”
Federal government sources said it was the NSW government which would have granted the entry exemption, not the Commonwealth.
Senator Faruqi echoed similar comments.
‘A new low’
“This is a new low. Thousands of families remain separated from their loved ones overseas. But Katie Hopkins is deemed important enough to get through the system,” she said.
“I haven’t seen my mother or my daughter since 2019. It says a lot about our priorities that Katie Hopkins can be permitted to come here and spew her vitriol during a pandemic. It’s as breathtaking as it is soul-crushing.”
“What’s worse, Hopkins is making a mockery of our hotel quarantine system by openly flouting the rules and bragging about it on social media. This is just rage-inducing stuff from start to finish,” she said.
The post ‘Despicable’: Government slams ‘right-wing provocateur’ Katie Hopkins amid calls for her visa to cancelled’ appeared first on The New Daily.
**Know benefits of facebook marketing --http://bit.ly/2RgChw3