Maria Thomas
@mariathomas.bsky.social
Human rights lawyer at Duncan Lewis Public Law; PhD candidate at University of Nottingham. Views my own.
Today marks the 4th anniversary of the most deadly incident in the Channel, and my thoughts are with the families and friends of the men, women and children who died that night. I wish I could tell them that at least their loved ones’ deaths were not in vain; that things have changed.
November 24, 2025 at 10:41 AM
Today marks the 4th anniversary of the most deadly incident in the Channel, and my thoughts are with the families and friends of the men, women and children who died that night. I wish I could tell them that at least their loved ones’ deaths were not in vain; that things have changed.
Reposted by Maria Thomas
When Labour in the future say you have to vote for them to stop Reform – remember there are countless reasons that argument is equal parts absurd and offensive.
But 26th August 2025 should stand out for their complete capitulation to the right.
Absolutely shameful.
But 26th August 2025 should stand out for their complete capitulation to the right.
Absolutely shameful.
No10 spokesman not prepared to criticise anything about Farage speech today.
Not his description of "invasion", not his prediction that the UK on brink of civil war, not plans to pay the Taliban or Iran to take back migrants, or indeed to rule out doing so themselves.
Not his description of "invasion", not his prediction that the UK on brink of civil war, not plans to pay the Taliban or Iran to take back migrants, or indeed to rule out doing so themselves.
August 26, 2025 at 10:39 PM
When Labour in the future say you have to vote for them to stop Reform – remember there are countless reasons that argument is equal parts absurd and offensive.
But 26th August 2025 should stand out for their complete capitulation to the right.
Absolutely shameful.
But 26th August 2025 should stand out for their complete capitulation to the right.
Absolutely shameful.
Reposted by Maria Thomas
96% of trafficked people who, as non British nationals, consented to enter the UK's National Referral Mechanism & were found by the UK govt's identification system to be trafficked were not granted leave.
Imagine speaking up, providing evidence, waiting & the positive decision cutting you adrift.
Imagine speaking up, providing evidence, waiting & the positive decision cutting you adrift.
🚨 Thousands of trafficking survivors continue to be denied permission to stay in the UK despite their critical need for safety and support — a new report by @helenbamber.bsky.social, ATLEU & @ecpatuk.bsky.social reveals.
Instead survivors are left in fear and at risk of further exploitation. 🧵1/3
Instead survivors are left in fear and at risk of further exploitation. 🧵1/3
July 15, 2025 at 9:23 AM
96% of trafficked people who, as non British nationals, consented to enter the UK's National Referral Mechanism & were found by the UK govt's identification system to be trafficked were not granted leave.
Imagine speaking up, providing evidence, waiting & the positive decision cutting you adrift.
Imagine speaking up, providing evidence, waiting & the positive decision cutting you adrift.
Reposted by Maria Thomas
What happens when a political agenda takes over any semblance of journalistic standards
Telegraph admits its story about private school family not being able to go on five holidays was complete nonsense and not remotely fact-checked
Beyond embarrassing
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/0/the-t...
Telegraph admits its story about private school family not being able to go on five holidays was complete nonsense and not remotely fact-checked
Beyond embarrassing
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/0/the-t...
An apology
On May 25 we published an online article “We earn £345k, but soaring private school fees mean we can’t go on five holidays” which included stock photographs and not, as the art...
www.telegraph.co.uk
June 18, 2025 at 8:39 PM
What happens when a political agenda takes over any semblance of journalistic standards
Telegraph admits its story about private school family not being able to go on five holidays was complete nonsense and not remotely fact-checked
Beyond embarrassing
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/0/the-t...
Telegraph admits its story about private school family not being able to go on five holidays was complete nonsense and not remotely fact-checked
Beyond embarrassing
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/0/the-t...
Reposted by Maria Thomas
Hot off the press! No Access to Justice 2, my new research report with Justice Together on access to asylum and immigration legal advice in every region and jurisdiction of the UK.
Parliament launch today, online launch on June 23 - link to follow.
I'll post a link to the report asap.
Parliament launch today, online launch on June 23 - link to follow.
I'll post a link to the report asap.
June 9, 2025 at 11:00 AM
Hot off the press! No Access to Justice 2, my new research report with Justice Together on access to asylum and immigration legal advice in every region and jurisdiction of the UK.
Parliament launch today, online launch on June 23 - link to follow.
I'll post a link to the report asap.
Parliament launch today, online launch on June 23 - link to follow.
I'll post a link to the report asap.
Reposted by Maria Thomas
A question to PM Starmer:
👉 Are you angry about the lack of safe and legal routes for people fleeing danger?
👉 Are you angry about the unavoidable loss of lives along the route to the UK?
👉 Are you angry about the wars and violence that force people to leave their homes behind?
👉 Are you angry about the lack of safe and legal routes for people fleeing danger?
👉 Are you angry about the unavoidable loss of lives along the route to the UK?
👉 Are you angry about the wars and violence that force people to leave their homes behind?
June 3, 2025 at 9:52 AM
A question to PM Starmer:
👉 Are you angry about the lack of safe and legal routes for people fleeing danger?
👉 Are you angry about the unavoidable loss of lives along the route to the UK?
👉 Are you angry about the wars and violence that force people to leave their homes behind?
👉 Are you angry about the lack of safe and legal routes for people fleeing danger?
👉 Are you angry about the unavoidable loss of lives along the route to the UK?
👉 Are you angry about the wars and violence that force people to leave their homes behind?
Reposted by Maria Thomas
Keir Starmer is my MP. This is the letter I wrote to him today.
Subject: Island of Strangers?
Mr Starmer,
Let me tell you about this ‘stranger’.
Subject: Island of Strangers?
Mr Starmer,
Let me tell you about this ‘stranger’.
May 14, 2025 at 10:06 PM
Keir Starmer is my MP. This is the letter I wrote to him today.
Subject: Island of Strangers?
Mr Starmer,
Let me tell you about this ‘stranger’.
Subject: Island of Strangers?
Mr Starmer,
Let me tell you about this ‘stranger’.
Reposted by Maria Thomas
Jan 2024: The International Court of Justice orders Israel to protect Palestinians from the risk of genocide
Dec 2024: @amnesty.org finds sufficient evidence to conclude that Israeli authorities’ conduct in Gaza amounts to genocide
May 2025: The UK government ⬇️
Dec 2024: @amnesty.org finds sufficient evidence to conclude that Israeli authorities’ conduct in Gaza amounts to genocide
May 2025: The UK government ⬇️
May 14, 2025 at 2:32 PM
Jan 2024: The International Court of Justice orders Israel to protect Palestinians from the risk of genocide
Dec 2024: @amnesty.org finds sufficient evidence to conclude that Israeli authorities’ conduct in Gaza amounts to genocide
May 2025: The UK government ⬇️
Dec 2024: @amnesty.org finds sufficient evidence to conclude that Israeli authorities’ conduct in Gaza amounts to genocide
May 2025: The UK government ⬇️
Reposted by Maria Thomas
They think they've got this in the bag. But they're not ready for people like you showing up. Use your vote today to prove them wrong. 🗳️
Find your polling station: wheredoivote.co.uk
Find your polling station: wheredoivote.co.uk
May 1, 2025 at 9:38 AM
They think they've got this in the bag. But they're not ready for people like you showing up. Use your vote today to prove them wrong. 🗳️
Find your polling station: wheredoivote.co.uk
Find your polling station: wheredoivote.co.uk
Reposted by Maria Thomas
I’d ask my many cis-gender friends and followers to take a moment today to consider this scenario.
You are so unhappy / uncomfortable with your birth sex that you choose to live as the opposite sex at the cost of family and other relationships.
You are so unhappy / uncomfortable with your birth sex that you choose to live as the opposite sex at the cost of family and other relationships.
April 26, 2025 at 6:04 AM
I’d ask my many cis-gender friends and followers to take a moment today to consider this scenario.
You are so unhappy / uncomfortable with your birth sex that you choose to live as the opposite sex at the cost of family and other relationships.
You are so unhappy / uncomfortable with your birth sex that you choose to live as the opposite sex at the cost of family and other relationships.
Reposted by Maria Thomas
That is not what the visa application process looks like
The number of migrants applying for visas to the UK has fallen by more than a third over the past year in a sign that net migration is set to tumble from record levels
Number of visa applications falls by more than a third
www.thetimes.com
April 10, 2025 at 10:41 PM
That is not what the visa application process looks like
Reposted by Maria Thomas
🚨 Sonali Naik KC makes closing statement to The Cranston Inquiry: ‘The tragedy was preventable’ 🚨
Our Joint Head of Chambers, Sonali Naik KC, provided a statement on behalf of full participants, I/B Maria Thomas @duncanlewiss.bsky.social.
Read on here 🔽
gardencourtchambers.co.uk/sonali-naik-...
Our Joint Head of Chambers, Sonali Naik KC, provided a statement on behalf of full participants, I/B Maria Thomas @duncanlewiss.bsky.social.
Read on here 🔽
gardencourtchambers.co.uk/sonali-naik-...
March 31, 2025 at 10:57 AM
🚨 Sonali Naik KC makes closing statement to The Cranston Inquiry: ‘The tragedy was preventable’ 🚨
Our Joint Head of Chambers, Sonali Naik KC, provided a statement on behalf of full participants, I/B Maria Thomas @duncanlewiss.bsky.social.
Read on here 🔽
gardencourtchambers.co.uk/sonali-naik-...
Our Joint Head of Chambers, Sonali Naik KC, provided a statement on behalf of full participants, I/B Maria Thomas @duncanlewiss.bsky.social.
Read on here 🔽
gardencourtchambers.co.uk/sonali-naik-...
Reposted by Maria Thomas
📣 WATCH LIVE - CRANSTON INQUIRY📣
Our Joint Head of Chambers, Sonali Naik KC, provides opening statements on behalf of bereaved families and one of the two survivors, instructed by Maria Thomas of Duncan Lewis (@dlpubliclaw.bsky.social).
Livestream below 🔽
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlzn...
Our Joint Head of Chambers, Sonali Naik KC, provides opening statements on behalf of bereaved families and one of the two survivors, instructed by Maria Thomas of Duncan Lewis (@dlpubliclaw.bsky.social).
Livestream below 🔽
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlzn...
March 3, 2025 at 2:17 PM
📣 WATCH LIVE - CRANSTON INQUIRY📣
Our Joint Head of Chambers, Sonali Naik KC, provides opening statements on behalf of bereaved families and one of the two survivors, instructed by Maria Thomas of Duncan Lewis (@dlpubliclaw.bsky.social).
Livestream below 🔽
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlzn...
Our Joint Head of Chambers, Sonali Naik KC, provides opening statements on behalf of bereaved families and one of the two survivors, instructed by Maria Thomas of Duncan Lewis (@dlpubliclaw.bsky.social).
Livestream below 🔽
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlzn...
Reposted by Maria Thomas
Writing this with a heavy heart: the refugee citizenship ban is the single most unconscionable policy Labour has proposed since it entered power. It’s the moment that I felt my support for this administration begin to crumble inews.co.uk/opinion/colu...
The precise moment my support for Keir Starmer began to crumble
Labour is going to prevent refugees from ever becoming citizens of Britain
inews.co.uk
February 12, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Writing this with a heavy heart: the refugee citizenship ban is the single most unconscionable policy Labour has proposed since it entered power. It’s the moment that I felt my support for this administration begin to crumble inews.co.uk/opinion/colu...
This weekend marks the third anniversary of the tragic shipwreck in November 2021, where more than 30 men, women & children lost their lives in the English Channel. I’m honoured to have been asked to speak at a memorial event in Dunkirk tonight, as the families continue their search for justice
November 23, 2024 at 9:27 AM
This weekend marks the third anniversary of the tragic shipwreck in November 2021, where more than 30 men, women & children lost their lives in the English Channel. I’m honoured to have been asked to speak at a memorial event in Dunkirk tonight, as the families continue their search for justice
Reposted by Maria Thomas
#r4today already getting it wrong in its coverage from Turkey:
1) Turkey has never been "welcoming" to refugees. The EU paid it, a lot, to prevent people reaching its borders, and Turkey has been shown to repeatedly abuse them.
2) Refugees are not "illegal". Nothing about what they do is illegal.
1) Turkey has never been "welcoming" to refugees. The EU paid it, a lot, to prevent people reaching its borders, and Turkey has been shown to repeatedly abuse them.
2) Refugees are not "illegal". Nothing about what they do is illegal.
November 18, 2024 at 6:14 AM
#r4today already getting it wrong in its coverage from Turkey:
1) Turkey has never been "welcoming" to refugees. The EU paid it, a lot, to prevent people reaching its borders, and Turkey has been shown to repeatedly abuse them.
2) Refugees are not "illegal". Nothing about what they do is illegal.
1) Turkey has never been "welcoming" to refugees. The EU paid it, a lot, to prevent people reaching its borders, and Turkey has been shown to repeatedly abuse them.
2) Refugees are not "illegal". Nothing about what they do is illegal.
Reposted by Maria Thomas
The plight of women in Florida is dystopian, including the rise of fake abortion clinics offering the untested practice of "abortion reversal." After the failure of the abortion rights referendum in the state, the situation will get worse. Our News Agents film. www.youtube.com/watch?v=df5B...
A war on women - Florida’s abortion crisis | The News Agents
YouTube video by The News Agents
www.youtube.com
November 12, 2024 at 3:45 PM
The plight of women in Florida is dystopian, including the rise of fake abortion clinics offering the untested practice of "abortion reversal." After the failure of the abortion rights referendum in the state, the situation will get worse. Our News Agents film. www.youtube.com/watch?v=df5B...
Well this seems like a nice place so far. 24 hrs in, and my feed isn’t littered with anti-immigration, ignorant nonsense. I can scroll along and not immediately feel enraged. What a delightful change that makes 🧡
November 16, 2024 at 9:20 PM
Well this seems like a nice place so far. 24 hrs in, and my feed isn’t littered with anti-immigration, ignorant nonsense. I can scroll along and not immediately feel enraged. What a delightful change that makes 🧡