”But the RNLI should not be sending boats to meet boats which have been escorted by the French authorities to mid-channel.”

You forgot to complete that sentence. “…escorted by the French authorities to mid-channel, then abandoned in their leaky, unreliable craft”.

Unlike the Royal Navy, The RNLI is a privately-run, independent charity, funded by voluntary public subscriptions and donations operating, under Royal Charter, according the the provisions of Article 3 of that Charter. Nowhere in those articles is there any limitation on the rescue activities of the RNLI dependent on the cause of the peril in which those rescued find themselves - all that is necessary is for the lives of human beings to be at risk at sea.

Read the Charter and educate yourself.

Having spent a great deal of time at sea in large sailing vessels, and having witnessed at first hand the power of the sea and the frailty of human life at sea, I know that it’s a particularly cruel, callous sort of person who would condone abandoning a group of people effectively adrift and at risk in a small boat at sea, no matter what their origins or motivations. And no matter the colour of their skins. Fortunately, there are still some of us who hold themselves to far higher standards of decency and humanity.

Take care, Nigel, your true colours are showing, and they’re not pretty, not pretty at all…