A FINE MESS

Furious grandad told to pay "obscene' £6k bill after migrant hid in his motorhome trailer in France

- PAUL BRITTON

A RETIRED ambulance service worker who has dedicated his life to helping others has been told to pay a £6,000 fine within 60 days after a migrant was found hiding inside a trailer attached to his converted motorhome in France.

Great-grandfather Peter Hughes, 75, who met Queen Elizabeth after accepting a long-service award from North West Ambulance Service, has branded the enforcement action by the Home Office as 'obscene. He said he and his wife, Anne, 78, knew nothing of the would-be stowaway - and they have cooperated fully with the authorities at every turn.

Peter told the M.E.N. how French border force officers at the Port of Calais found a young Sudanese man hiding inside the trailer.

After returning home to Droylsden, Tameside, Peter said he was sent a letter informing him he was being investigated. He said he complied fully and completed all the relevant paperwork expected of him, telling the Home Office he and Anne, a former carer who retired at the age of 75, knew nothing of the man's desperate bid to get to the UK.

But on Saturday, Peter received an undated letter from the Entrant 'Clandestine Civil Penalty Team' part of the UK Border Force- telling him the 'Secretary of State has decided' he's 'liable to a penalty of £6,000.'