News
Record 230 Migrants Cross the Channel in One ‘small’ Boat
— 2 mins read
The average small boat carried seven people in 2018 but now it is 70
A small boat carrying 230 illegal immigrants arrived in Dover overnight, the largest number ever recorded on a single vessel crossing the Channel, BBC News reported.
The 15-metre inflatable was described as 'buckling' in the water as it approached the UK. It smashed the previous single-boat record of 165 people, set only last month.
Government sources said the giant boat proves their tactics are working. They claim police pressure on French beaches is forcing smuggling gangs to launch fewer boats and cram more people onto each one.
The boats have been getting bigger for years
The average small boat carried just seven people in 2018. By March this year it was 63, according to House of Commons Library figures. So far this month it is 70.
Last year's total of roughly 41,000 was the second-highest on record, according to the Migration Observatory.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said the crossings 'should be declared a national security emergency'. He added: 'Yes, the overall numbers this year are down but they're still horrendous.'
What taxpayers are paying France
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has committed up to £660 million of taxpayer money to France over three years under a payment-by-results deal signed in April, The Guardian reported. The deal puts 40% more French enforcement personnel on the beaches.
Only £160 million of that sum is withheld if France misses its targets. The remaining £500 million is paid regardless of results, so the taxpayer carries the cost whether the boats stop or not.
It smashed the previous single-boat record of 165 people, set only last month.
The government says joint operations have prevented more than 47,000 attempted crossings and seized 1,100 boats and engines since the election, according to the Home Office.
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said the French could have stopped a boat this size in shallow water. 'I recently saw for myself French gendarmes standing by and doing nothing while illegal immigrants boarded in knee-deep water', he said. He called the £660 million payment 'a disgrace'.
The six-month promise excludes 150,000 people already here
The Home Office has pledged to decide asylum claims within six months, down from more than a year. New arrivals facing deportation will have their cases heard by a judge within 24 weeks of entering the country.
The current average wait for a judicial decision is 67 weeks. The Refugee Council, a charity part-funded by government grants, says the number of people waiting to appeal has tripled in two years.
Ministers estimate the faster system could save up to £6.9 billion. But the target does not apply to the 150,000 asylum seekers already in the country whose appeals have yet to be heard. Because new claims are being prioritised, those legacy cases could wait even longer.
The prime minister's spokesperson said the government is 'not complacent' and is 'bearing down on these crossings'. Ministers are braced for more of the so-called mega-dinghies in the weeks ahead.
