Canto

Canto examines the border landscape of East Kent, the closest UK coastline to mainland Europe. Utilising photography, video and text it examines the tension between place and perception exploring how this coastal frontier has become a battleground for the conflicting narratives surrounding migration, identity and belonging in the 21st century.

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In the 2016 EU referendum, over 60% of voters in Dover, Shepway, and Thanet, the areas nearest to the European mainland voted to leave the European Union. This decision, deeply rooted in the xenophobic rhetoric that dominated the Vote Leave campaign, highlighted the deep-seated fears and anxieties that have come to define an anti-immigration ideology both locally and nationally.

Canto does not speak on behalf of those who have been displaced but critiques the structures within our society that perpetuate the marginalisation of vulnerable people. This approach is rooted in an ethical commitment to fairness, acknowledging the complexity of representation and the responsibility of engaging with these issues as someone who is neither a migrant nor a refugee.

Media and political rhetoric have played a significant role in shaping the public perception of the migrant experience. Canto is an attempt to hold these institutions accountable for the fear they perpetuate and to expose the deliberate use of misinformation to stoke public anxieties. By juxtaposing the raw reality of the border landscape with the language used to describe migrants and refugees, Canto challenges viewers to confront their own biases and assumptions, and to rethink the way in which they engage with these issues.

Port of Calais says car traffic dropped by almost 7% last year, which it is attributing to the migrant crisis.

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05/09/2026 8:53 pm

UNHCR says it is deeply worried about the situation of refugees and migrants faced with harsh winter conditions across Europe.

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05/09/2026 8:53 pm

[#Opération] de recherche et de sauvetage de 60 naufragés dans le détroit du Pas-de-Calais par la @MarineNationale et @douane_france sous la coordination du #CROSSGrisNez ➡️

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05/09/2026 8:53 pm

60 migrants picked up in the Channel today by the French authorities.

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A break in the windy weather has seen the first migrant crossings in the Channel in almost a month. Around 50 people have been brought to Dover by Border Force.

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As migrant crossings resume, the former Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, says bad weather ‘is not a sustainable policy for stopping the boats’.

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[#Opération] d’assistance et de sauvetage de 2 personnes au large de Wimereux (62) sous la coordination du @CROSSGrisNez. ▶

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The French authorities returned two migrants to Boulogne today. Around 150 people reached UK waters and were taken to Dover by Border Force.

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05/09/2026 8:53 pm

A Home Office Minister has told the Commons that six more hotels are in use to house migrants than when Labour came to power – but Angela Eagle says nine are scheduled to close by the end of March.

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05/09/2026 8:53 pm

Fines for lorry drivers who inadvertently bring stowaways into the UK will rise from £2,000 to £10,000 per migrant from today.

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86 migrants in two boats were brought to shore at Dover on Sunday.

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99 migrants in two boats were brought to Dover by Border Force yesterday.

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A 23-year-old woman from east London has been arrested as part of an investigation into the smuggling of Albanian migrants into the UK. The Romanian national was detained near her home address in Walthamstow.

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The Home Office is to launch a statutory inquiry into the alleged mistreatment of asylum seekers at Manston migrant processing centre.

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The full opening of the new day centre for migrants in Calais takes place today.

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Some activists in Calais say the new migrant centre is too far out of town, and want a different one set up here.

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The makeshift migrant camp that has formed next to the new day centre in Calais.

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Care4Calais says there are nine suspected cases of coronavirus among migrants sleeping rough in northern France.

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The Home Office says 40 migrants reached the UK today on three boats. It says the French prevented 106 people from making the crossing.

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Migrant crossings: the Home Office says 28 people on a single boat reached the UK on Monday.

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NEW LAW! TO STOP ILLEGAL MIGRANTS, 300 MIGRANTS A DAY POUR IN, MIGRANTS FLOODING BACK TO BRITAIN, 7.5M MIGRANTS LIVE IN BRITAIN, SCANDAL OF 'OPEN DOOR' FOR FOREIGN STUDENTS, MIGRANTS DO TAKE BRITISH JOBS, MARRIED MIGRANTS BENEFITS SCANDAL, ALL MIGRANTS TO GET A BRITISH PENSION, GO TO BRITAIN FOR BENEFITS SAYS EU, EU WANTS MIGRANTS TO TAKE OUR JOBS, MIGRANTS MUST GET BENEFITS ORDERS EU, FOREIGN FAMILIES RAKE IN BENEFITS, MIGRANTS RUSH TO GET OUR JOBS, MIGRANTS MAKE MUGS OF US ALL, MIGRANTS BLAMED FOR SURGE IN CRIME, UK BORDERS THE DAMNING TRUTH, FAMILY TORN APART BY DRINK-DRIVE ILLEGAL MIGRANT, UK BORDER BOSS: BORDERS ARE JUST A PAIN IN THE A***, GPs TOLD: YOU MUST TREAT FOREIGNERS, 370,000 migrants on the dole, May: I can and I will crack down on immigrants, God Save the Queen test for migrants, 500,000 let in UK without checks, Immigrants fuel record surge in UK population, Well stop migrants if euro collapses, Amnesty' for 120,000 migrants, Sun SAYS DRAW A RED LINE ON IMMIGRATION OR ELSE!, ILLEGALS' GUARDING OLYMPICS, MIGRANTS TO GET MORE BENEFITS, MIGRANTS FUEL UK BABY BOOM, MIGRANTS SET TO FLOOD IN, MIGRANT NUMBERS AT CRISIS POINT, NEW FARCE OVER MIGRANT CROOKS, I'LL STOP MIGRANT BENEFITS, HOW ROMANIAN CRIMINALS TERRORISE OUR STREETS, 79% SAY WE MUST BAN EU MIGRANTS, MIGRANTS SHUN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, MIGRANTS FACE NEW BAN ON BENEFITS, WE MUST STOP THE MIGRANT INVASION, NEW EU GUIDE TO CLAIM BRITISH BENEFITS, ASYLUM SEEKERS COST E1.5M A DAY, BATTLE TO KEEP OUT EU MIGRANTS, OUTRAGE AT NEW MIGRANT FLOOD, BRITS TO GET HOMES FIRST, MIGRANTS MUST GET BENEFITS SAY EU, 1-IN-5 MIGRANTS HEADS TO BRITAIN, MIGRANTS CHANGE BRITAIN FOREVER, NEW FEARS OVER ILLEGAL MIGRANTS, FOREIGNERS IN £370M NHS RIP-OFF, 98% DEMAND BAN NEW MIGRANTS, 75,000 SAY NO MORE EU MIGRANTS, YOU PAY TO TEACH MIGRANTS MANNERS, 150,000 SAY NO TO NEW EU MIGRANTS, CRACKDOWN ON EU MIGRANTS, BRITAIN IS FULL UP AND FED UP, EPIDEMIC OF HEALTH TOURISTS 'COSTS US BILLIONS', VITAL MIGRANT ID. CHECKS SCRAPPED, COALITION AT WAR OVER MIGRANTS, NOW UN. MEDDLERS LECTURE BRITAIN ON MIGRANTS, MIGRANTS WILL BE CHARGED BY NHS, THE RIOTERS WE CAN'T KICK OUT, 4.000 FOREIGN MURDERERS: AND RAPISTS WE CAN'T THROW OUT, TRUE TOLL OF MASS MIGRATION ON UK LIFE, 500,000 MIGRANTS GET SOCIAL HOUSING, MIGRANTS TOLD: FIND WORK IN 6 MONTHS OR NO BENEFITS, QUEUE HERE TO WORK IN BRITAIN, POPULATION OF BRITAIN TO SOAR BY 10M IN JUST 25 YEARS, A SPECTACULAR MISTAKE ON IMMIGRATION, MIGRATION: I DO SHARE YOUR CONCERNS, IMMIGRATION: THE BACKLASH, SLASH BENEFITS FOR EU MIGRANTS, BRITAIN'S BORDERS IN CHAOS -OFFICIAL, MIGRANT INFLUX FUELS NEW CRISIS IN SCHOOLS, MIGRANT WAR ON BRITISH STREETS, ROMA MIGRANT INVASION WILL START UK RIOTS, Cameron's migrant crackdown, Cable hits out at Tories over migrant 'panic', UN condemns Cameron over immigrant law, Racist' spot checks in May's hunt for illegal immigrants, mmigrants told: speak English or lose your benefits, Cable:Tories panickingon immigration, A&E patients told: prove you're not migrants, Benefits squeeze on EU immigrants, High-risk' immigrants will pay to enter UK, 4M MIGRANTS VOTE TO COME HERE, IMMIGRANT CRIME SOARS, FOREIGN NHS CHEATS PUSH ASIDE CANCER PATIENTS, New wave of immigrants begins, Speak English or lose benefits, Migrants are given free access to our GPs, MPs want immigrant ban to save British jobs, Rights Act lets foreign criminals stay in UK, Immigrants Fill one in five skilled British jobs, No bar on Bulgarian immigrants, Romanian migrants 'will help economy', Jobs for Britons, not immigrants, Britain says no to Syria's refugees, Migrants will have to pay at A&E, EXPOSED: THE TRUE COST OF OUR OPEN BORDERS, CHEEKY BEGGARS, Legal aid curb for migrants, True scale of European immigration, The foreign beggars that Britain can't stop, May goes to War over EU migrants, Clampdown on NHS care for migrants, Idle' Britons are allowing Romanians to take jobs, Police allow immigrant offenders to slip the net, Cameron vows to cut benefits for migrants, Benefit cut urged to curb new migrants, Minorities told: your culture is no defence, Cameron to deny aid for immigrants, Cameron faces voter fury over immigrants, EU migrants face tough new curbs on benefits, Cameron lines up Merkel to curb migrant benefits, Romanians in UK like 'Brits with French villas', Migrants set to lose benefits for children living abroad, 3000 illegal migrants a month, 4 IN 5 NEW NURSES ON NHS WARDS ARE FOREIGN, Labour chiefs warn MPs: don't mention immigration, UK passports for migrants without any crime checks, Police checks for migrants, I'm ready to lead Britain out of Europe if migrant reforms fail, WHAT ABOUT BRITISH WORKERS?, MIGRANTS: FOUR YEAR BENEFITS BAN, Coalition abandons target to reduce migration, EU 'must give way to UK on migrants', EU benefit tourists face being sent home, Migrants face crackdown on benefits, THE END FOR BENEFIT TOURISM, Calais goes to war over 'soft touch' UK benefits, Home Office in 'mess' over asylum, Merkel: I will block PM on immigrants, Scandal of vanishing foreign criminals, No 10 seeks emergency curbs on migration, Boris calls for quotas on EU migrants, YOU CAN'T IGNORE MIGRATION NOW, MIGRANT INVASION: ARMY ON ALERT, CALAIS 'IS BESIEGED' BY GANGS OF MIGRANTS, Reclaim our borders, PM warned, Border controls in chaos, OPEN BORDERS: A NEW FIASCO, UK special forces help save 30,000 refugees, MORE FOREIGN CONVICTS WIN RIGHT TO STAY, CALAIS IN CRISIS OVER UK-BOUND MIGRANTS, Cameron's immigration crackdown, New benefits crackdown on EU migrants, MIGRANT FAMILY ON £355K A YEAR BENEFITS, Population of Britain rises fastest in Europe, Politicians blamed for hostility to migrants, CAMERON TELLS UK MUSLIMS: BE MORE BRITISH, 208,000 PASSPORTS HANDED TO MIGRANTS IN ONE YEAR, EU's looming migrant tragedy, \'a330M IN BENEFITS IS SENT ABROAD, MIGRATION IS OUT OF CONTROL, ASYLUM SEEKERS IN 4 STAR HOTELS, EU 'will not budge' in negotiations with UK on immigtation, MELTING POT UK, DON'T ASK MIGRANTS HOW LONG THEY'RE STAYING, Pressure on Cameron to expel jobless EU migrants, Middle class blamed for migration, PM'S IMMIGRATION PLEDGE IN TATTERS, MIGRATION SOARS: GOOD SAYS CABLE, An immigration crisis on Britain's doorstep, Immigration minister quits over cleaner, English a second language at 1 in 9 schools, Cameron set for U-turn on Syrian refugees, HOUSING BENEFIT BAN ON JOBLESS MIGRANTS, SPEAK ENGLISH OR LOSE BENEFITS, Gift vouchers for fighting off asylum cases, Ban migrant welfare for two years - Duncan Smith, MILIBAND: STOP CHEAP FOREIGN WORKERS, Passport to UK for Europe's poorest, BENEFITS BRITAIN HERE WE COME!, KICK OUT ALL FOREIGNI BENEFIT CHEATS, MIGRANTS FACE BENEFITS BAN, OPEN DOOR FOR NEW MIGRANTS, NEW MIGRANT FLOOD ON WAY, MIGRANTS FUEL 1000-A-DAY INCREASE IN POPULATION, MIGRANT SICK PAY BENEFIT SCANDAL, ILLEGAL MIGRANTS POUR INTO BRITAIN, MIGRANTS WILL PAY FOR NHS, MIGRANTS DO TAKE OUR JOBS, MIGRANT MADNESS, BENEFIT CUTS FOR MIGRANTS, MIGRANTS CLAMOUR TO REACH BRITAIN, MIGRANT'S CAMP TO BE TORN DOWN, MIGRANTS STORM FERRY TO BRITAIN, SUSPECT IS KILLER MIGRANT, WE'LL QUIT EU OVER MIGRANTS, BRITAIN IS A MIGRANT MAGNET, NO BENEFITS FOR MIGRANTS, AT LAST! MIGRANT BENEFITS BAN, "HIDDEN" MIGRANT MILLIONS, MIGRANT CONTROLS OR WE'LL QUIT EU, 400,000 MIGRANTS MISSING IN BRITAIN, 70% SAY WE MUST BAN NEW MIGRANTS, FURY OVER BRITAIN'S 2M ILLEGAL MIGRANTS, MIGRANT NUMBERS 'OUT OF CONTROL', MIGRANT BENEFITS BUILT MY HOUSE, MIGRANTS: AT LAST PM ACTS, YOU BRITONS ARE JUST TOO LAZY!, TEACHERS BATTLE TO COPE WITH INFLUX OF MIGRANTS, BLUNKETT: MIGRANTS REALLY ARE SWAMPING PARTS OF UK, 1M MIGRANTS TO FLOOD BRITAIN, MIGRANTS MOVE INTO TOP HOTEL, CALAIS 'IS BESIEGED' BY GANGS OF MIGRANTS, Send back channel migrants or risk tragedy, £44m to keep border at Calais, Britons want to scrap May's migration target, Border boats called in over channel migrants, Macron blames 'hypocritical' Britain for migrant drownings, Patel opens asylum route but will not waive visas over safety fears, PM calls in military to stem flow of migrants

Canto is a call for empathy and fairness. It asks audiences to reconsider the narratives they have been fed, to question the systems that create division and to recognise the shared humanity that underpins the issue of migration. By turning a critical eye on the forces that have distorted the public’s understanding of immigration this work hopes to foster a more nuanced, compassionate and objective dialogue around what it means to live in a world shaped by movement, borders and belonging.