A spoof news segment in which people in a coastal town express anti-immigrant sentiments has drawn criticism on social media.

The Twitter stunt sees actor Jolyon Rubinstein - calling himself "Dale Maily" - take to the streets of Folkestone in character as a TV news reporter, asking people their views on the situation with asylum seekers crossing the Channel.

Responding to his prompting, the subjects of his vox pop spew forth a series of hateful views - and wildly inaccurate opinions - about the supposed "invasion" by migrants.

In one scene a man says asylum seekers should be "drowned at sea", while in another clip a man suggests gunships should be deployed off the Kent coast to stop the crossings.

The video has now racked up more than 560,000 views on Twitter - and has been criticised by some for mocking the town and its people.

Charlie Phillips, a documentary producer from Folkestone, replied saying: "You know, you could spend more time here and speak to people in support of refugees, and people with a more nuanced view.

"I don't see how taking the p*** out of people in Folkestone, however much I disagree with them, helps anyone, least of all refugees."

Another Twitter user said: "I know it was supposed to be funny but I've never been more ashamed to live in Folkestone. Who are these horrible people?"

Home Secretary Suella Braverman, whose responsibility it is to deal with the small boats issue, faced criticism in recent weeks after she dubbed the crossings an "invasion".

Speaking in the House of Commons, she said: "Let's be clear about what is really going on here - the British people deserve to know which party is serious about stopping the invasion on our southern coast and which party is not.

"Some 40,000 people have arrived on the south coast this year alone.

"Many of them facilitated by criminal gangs, some of them are actual members of criminal gangs."

Critics were been quick to condemn her words, with Labour's Coventry South MP Zarah Sultana tweeting: "Disgusted to hear Suella Braverman say there's an 'invasion on our southern coast', just a day after a migrant detention centre was fire-bombed.

"Language like this - portraying migrants as 'invaders' - whips-up hate & spreads division."