A “dangerous” anti-Islam influencer, who has been barred from entering the UK to speak at a Tommy Robinson rally, has threatened to defy the home secretary by travelling to Britain via small boat.
Valentina Gomez dared the government to stop her, suggesting that Donald Trump’s White House would intervene if authorities attempted to arrest her.
Ms Gomez, a US-based influencer who gained notoriety for stunts including burning a copy of the Quran, was excluded by home secretary Shabana Mahmood following a significant backlash from MPs and campaign groups.
Responding to the decision in a video posted on her X account, Ms Gomez stated: “I just got banned from England. Plan A is for aeroplane, and since that’s no longer an option we’re going to plan B, and Plan B is for boats.
“I’m going to hop on a boat, get free luxury accommodation, deliver my beautiful speech, and if they dare to arrest me, I guarantee you that the White House will get involved.
“I’m not just coming with Jesus Christ, I’m coming with current and former soldiers of the US military. If they really want to deny my entry, well, they’re just going to have to stop the boats.”
Baroness Shaista Gohir, chief executive of Muslim Women’s Network UK, welcomed the government’s decision.
Baroness Gohir, who had campaigned for the ban, told the Press Association: “I am pleased that the home secretary has listened to concerns and acted swiftly. They have rightly recognised the danger [Ms Gomez] posed. Had she been allowed into the UK, then it would have sent a message that Muslim safety does not matter.”
Ms Gomez had been scheduled to speak at the Unite the Kingdom rally in central London on 16 May.
A previous protest organised by the group in September, at which Ms Gomez reportedly spoke, attracted between 110,000 and 150,000 attendees.
The home secretary, who possesses the power to cancel an individual’s permission to enter or remain in the UK, intervened on the grounds that Ms Gomez’s presence would not be conducive to the public good – the same justification used to block rapper Kanye West earlier this month.
