IF the unfunny farce of the Afghan hijack did not prove the already-evident fact that this country is seen as a soft touch by the hordes of economic migrants equipped with just one word of English - 'asylum' - then the forthcoming failure of Home Secretary Jack Straw to see this latest lot off sharpish in line with his tough talk in the Commons (and how can he when they have a bogged-down appeals system and generous benefits handouts set to keep them here for years?) will only ensure more such chancers will follow.

But if what is also being exploited by tens of thousands of bogus refugees is Britain's moral obligation to provide a safe haven for genuine asylum claimants, should not this much-abused device be turned off?

Given that we could easily fill Wembley stadium with the refugees, genuine and spurious, that we already have here, there is, surely, a case for the government announcing to the international community that we have done our whack and will not accept even one more claimant, but will instantly deport all, no matter what. In short, I am talking about a moratorium - putting up a no-exceptions "Full up" sign at all points of arrival.

Why not? The hordes we have here already clearly indicate we have done all that can be reasonably expected of us and much more than have many other countries.

In such circumstances - and in view of such misuse and over-use of our generosity and tolerance - is it not time we put up the shutters indefinitely and told these droves of hand-out seekers to try elsewhere for a change?

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.