The human side of Barney Curley

HE is best known for his legendary gambling exploits and as a serial charity-fundraiser but Barney Curley has now turned political campaigner by erecting a huge banner on his stud urging David Cameron to do more to help Syrian refugees.

The 75-year-old said he had put up the sign along the London Road near Newmarket because "someone has to make a stand".

The  Prime Minister has pledged to take 20,000 refugees over the next five years to help with the crisis but Curley, who has volunteered to take refugees into his home at Cleveland House on the Hamilton Road in Newmarket when they start arriving from Syrian camps later this year, thinks that is not enough.

Curley said: "It's a national disgrace for David Cameron to be making a big deal over taking 20,000 refugees over five years, then taking that money off his foreign aid budget.

"This is a tragedy and when they come the refugees will certainly be welcome at my house. To see these six-month old babies dying is heartbreaking, especially when you remember that the greatest love is a woman's love for her child."

Originally from County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland, Curley has lived in England since 1982, something he says is significant. He added: "I suppose I'm a refugee of sorts and I now consider myself English in a sense. It's a wonderful country and I've been treated well notably when the excellent National Health Service saved my life. I'm doing my bit for these people that want to come. We're all human beings and someone has to make a stand."