Nurse Who Called for Boat Migrants to Be Deported Faces a New Reality After Officials Reviewed Her Social Media Posts
The nurse has been suspended from practising for six months after making a number of controversial comments about migrants on social media. The decision was made after a panel from the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) found that her online posts contained offensive, discriminatory and insulting language towards people of different races, religions and immigration backgrounds.
Tina Patricia Orbell was working as a bank nurse in the emergency department at University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust when the posts were discovered. The concerns first came to light in early 2025 after three members of the public and three of her former colleagues reported her social media activity to the NMC. The complaints focused on several posts she had shared and comments she had written between July 2024 and February 2025.
According to the panel, many of the posts included hostile language about migrants and asylum seekers. One of the posts shared by Mrs Orbell joked that because of a red weather warning, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had asked “illegals” to use the Channel Tunnel instead of crossing the English Channel. The panel also examined another post showing a crowd waving Union Flags and England flags. Beneath the image, Mrs Orbell wrote: “Stop the boats! I predicted that eventually the British would come together and fight back. This government is corrupt through and through! We deserve better.”
In another comment, she simply wrote, “Deport them all,” referring to migrants. The NMC said these remarks could make members of the public feel that they might receive unfair treatment from a healthcare professional because of their race, religion or immigration status. The regulator said this had the potential to damage public confidence in the nursing profession.
After the complaints were made, Mrs Orbell deleted both her Facebook and Instagram accounts. During the investigation, she admitted she regretted what she had posted and apologised for her actions. She also told the panel she felt “deep shame and regret” over the comments and accepted that her behaviour had fallen below the standards expected of a registered nurse.
However, the NMC also noted that while she had shown some understanding of the seriousness of her actions, she appeared to reduce her responsibility by saying she was not very familiar with technology and did not fully understand how social media worked.
The misconduct panel concluded that the posts clearly contained offensive, derogatory and discriminatory language aimed at people based on their race, religion and immigration status. Because of this, it ruled that her fitness to practise had been impaired.
As a result, Mrs Orbell has been suspended from the nursing profession for six months. The panel also imposed an interim suspension order lasting up to 18 months while the case reaches its conclusion. The ruling stated that Mrs Orbell did not submit any written arguments about what sanction should be imposed. However, she informed the panel that she had already retired and had no plans to return to nursing in the future.
