People smugglers offering 'summer deals' post clips on TikTok, Instagram and Facebook to lure migrants into crossing Channel as July is set to be the busiest month ever for arrivals
Adverts are still being shared on platforms including TikTok, Facebook and Instagram despite social media giants promising to clamp down on the content.
Posts offer crossings to the UK for prices ranging from £900 to £5,000, and often include a WhatsApp number to contact.
One advert shared on a Facebook page for Albanians wanting to work in the UK even included specific pick-up and drop-off times and locations, while another promised summer journeys for 'only £2,000'.
Others mimic business sales tactics, urging viewers to 'migrate before it's too late' and tempting them with videos of successful crossings and images of British landmarks captioned 'welcome to London '.
A total of 2,378 small boat migrants arrived in the UK this month up to Saturday. This puts it on course to be the busiest July on record, with 1,711 arriving in 2023 - the last busiest 12 days.
It comes as Sir Keir Starmer announced a 'one in, one out' deal that will see one illegal migrant sent back to France in return for accepting one who has made a legal claim on the Continent.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has refused to say how many of the thousands arriving by dinghy will be removed under the pilot scheme, amid fears it will not serve as a sufficient deterrent.
One advert shared on a Facebook page for Albanians in the UK even included specific pick-up and drop-off times and locations
The National Crime Agency has been working with social media companies to get video footage of the crossings removed, with more than 8,000 taken down last year alone.
But the number of videos still available online show the big platforms remain a key forum for smugglers looking to reach new clients.
Dr Peter Walsh, a senior researcher at The Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, believes content featuring migrants themselves could be particularly persuasive to anyone thinking of making the journey.
'Research suggests individuals are more sceptical about what smugglers say, but they feel more connection with migrants who are shown making the journey themselves, particularly if they share the same nationality,' he told MailOnline.
'The key thing is to share information about particular routes to take, how the process works and how much it costs. The countries migrants are going to are often presented as highly desirable, but often the information is not accurate.
'These are businesses a the end of the day, however disreputable, and prices go up and down. We've seen evidence of discounts being offered to people driving the boats.
'There are anecdotal reports of specific discounts being offered to some nationalities, such as Eritreans. I'm speculating, but it might be because smugglers are working out what kind of price point they'd be able to afford.'
Several videos uncovered by the i showed the social media accounts of suspected smugglers celebrating successful crossings with gleeful captions such as 'Welcome to London'.
One boasted 'we are masters' alongside celebratory emojis.
Comment threads are often used by migrants to contact smugglers.
In one comment to a TikTok clip, a user asks: 'Guys, how does one reach Britain', to which a suspected smuggler replies: 'Message me.'
Ministers are under pressure to get a grip of the migrant crisis with 2025 on course to be a record year for small-boat crossings.
A Home Office spokesperson said: 'It is unacceptable for any individual, whether they are a member of a smuggling gang or otherwise, to peddle these lies on social media and promote the criminal services of people-traffickers to others.
'It is also unacceptable for social media companies to host this type of promotional content, which is encouraging people to put their lives at risk in the Channel.
'As a result, we are working with the National Crime Agency and major social media companies, including TikTok, to seek the rapid removal of online content promoting dangerous small boat crossings. Since November 2021, the National Crime Agency has worked with social media companies to take down around 22,000 organised immigration crime related social media posts and accounts.'
More than 21,000 people have already made the perilous journey across the Channel, and Iraqi Kurds now dominate the people smuggling networks.
Yvette Cooper is set to strike a migrant returns deal with Iraq which would enable the UK to send more failed asylum seekers back.
The Home Secretary is said to be in the 'final stages' of agreeing the pact to speed up cooperation between London and Baghdad.
Ms Cooper is also planning to double down on Labour's controversial migrants return deal by banning repeat offenders from claiming asylum.
Home Office sources said that any boat migrant who has been returned to France and then made a crossing again would not be able to apply for asylum.
Their identities would also be stored on a biometric database. A source said: 'At about £3,000 a crossing it would be a total waste of money for them to try again.'
Human-rights campaigners have said they will support court challenges brought by small-boat arrivals, while the EU says it is assessing whether the scheme complies with the 'spirit and the letter of the law'.
Ms Cooper is also facing calls to extend the biometric testing into an effective revival of Sir Tony Blair's abandoned ID card plans, to stop migrants working illegally.
In May, the Home Office's immigration white paper promised to roll out 'digital identity for all overseas citizens' to improve border management and 'enforcement against illegal working and misuse'.
But there are increasing signs that ID cards could now be introduced for all citizens – not just migrants.
Last month, Downing Street was said to be looking 'very closely' at a so-called 'BritCard' that could be used to check on an individual's right to live and work in this country.
And yesterday, Labour MPs told the Mail on Sunday that on the back of the 'one in, one out' deal with France, now was the time to revive a modern version of those plans.
Bury North MP James Frith said: 'There is considerable merit in revisiting digital ID now, given how far technology and public confidence in digitisation have come since this was last considered in our politics.
'From online banking to NHS apps, people are increasingly comfortable with secure digital services.'
He added: 'In light of the new returns deal with France and efforts to strengthen the integrity of our asylum system, a carefully-designed digital ID could help protect access to public services, prevent abuse, and ensure faster, fairer support for those who need it.'
According to TikTok, the platform proactively removed 96.9% of content that showed human trafficking and smuggling, including 70.4% within 24 hours of posting.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
5 minutes ago
- The Independent
German court acquits satirist over social media post following Trump assassination attempt
A German court on Wednesday acquitted a satirist who was charged with having approved of an assassination attempt against Donald Trump during last year's U.S. election campaign in a social media post and disturbed the public peace. In a quickly deleted post under his alias 'El Hotzo' on X in July last year, Sebastian Hotz drew a parallel between Trump and 'the last bus' and wrote 'unfortunately just missed.' In a follow-up post, he wrote: 'I find it absolutely fantastic when fascists die.' A gunman opened fire at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, while Trump was campaigning for president last July, grazing Trump's ear and killing one of his supporters in the crowd. Trump went on to win the White House in November. Prosecutors charged Hotz with approval of offenses. At a one-day trial at the Tiergarten district court in Berlin, prosecutors called for the 29-year-old to be handed a 6,000-euro ($7,030) fine. They argued that the posts fell into the category of hate crimes and, because Hotz has nearly 740,000 followers on X, could disturb the public peace, German news agency dpa reported. Hotz argued that what a satirist says should be understood as a joke, and that 'playing with provocation' is his job. Judge Andrea Wilms said in her ruling that Hotz's post was satire that should go unpunished, even if the comments may have been tasteless. She argued that no one would feel called upon to commit acts of violence by 'such clearly satirical utterances,' according to a court statement. The German Journalists' Association earlier this week criticized the trial as excessive and said that the case should be closed, arguing that satirical freedom should be interpreted generously. It noted that public broadcaster RBB already terminated its work with Hotz as a result of the post.
The Independent
5 minutes ago
- The Independent
Children face two-hour limits on Snapchat and TikTok as government cracks down on ‘compulsive' screen time
Children could face two-hour limits on social media like TikTok and Snapchat as part of a government plan to crack down on 'compulsive' phone use, the science and technology secretary has said. Peter Kyle, who is due to make an announcement in the autumn, warned of the effects on young people's sleep and their ability to focus on studying for exams, saying he was concerned about"the overall amount of time kids spend on these apps" as well as their content. Among the ideas being seriously considered are a two-hour cap per platform, while a night-time or school-time curfew has also been discussed, according to reports. Last year Australia passed a law to ban all under 16s from social media, although the UK is not expected to go that far. Mr Kyle said he was 'looking very carefully about the overall time kids spend on these apps'. "I think some parents feel a bit disempowered about how to actually make their kids healthier online,' he told Sky News. "I think some kids feel that sometimes there is so much compulsive behaviour with interaction with the apps they need some help just to take control of their online lives and those are things I'm looking at really carefully. "We talk a lot about a healthy childhood offline. We need to do the same online. I think sleep is very important, to be able to focus on studying is very important," he added. He added that he wanted to stop children spending hours viewing content which "isn't criminal, but it's unhealthy, the overuse of some of these apps". "I think we can incentivise the companies and we can set a slightly different threshold that will just tip the balance in favour of parents not always being the ones who are just ripping phones out of the kids' hands and having a really awkward, difficult conversation around it," he added. It comes after Angela Rayner warned on Tuesday that time spent online is a major factor in the weakening social cohesion in the UK, along with deprivation and immigration. Warning that the UK faces a repeat of last year's summer riots unless 'the government shows it can address people's concerns', the deputy prime minister said that the issue was having a 'profound impact on society'. She told colleagues: "Economic insecurity, the rapid pace of de-industrialisation, immigration and the impacts on local communities and public services, technological change and the amount of time people were spending alone online, and declining trust in institutions was having a profound impact on society."
The Sun
6 minutes ago
- The Sun
Celeb osteopath who parked outside uni halls with telescope and camera to perv on female students undressing is jailed
A CELEB osteopath who parked outside uni halls with a telescope and camera to perv on female students undressing has been jailed. Torben Hersborg wore a balaclava to hide his face and lay in the back of his Lexus to spy on the women in King's Cross, London. 3 The 64-year-old, whose celeb clients included Fearne Cotton and actress Anna Friel, was also spotted crawling around in the vehicle while peeking through the window. He has now been jailed for three years and five months and made the subject of a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO). The osteopath has pleaded guilty to three charges of observing a person doing a private act "for the purpose of obtaining sexual gratification". Snaresbrook Crown Court heard the offences took place on December 10, 14 and 21 last year. Varinder Hayre, prosecuting, said: "On December 21 at about 9pm, a member of the public reported that a male in a car has been taking photographs and videos of students in university students' accommodation. "The member of the public also said he has seen the male in the car about four years ago." The bystander also called police on December 10 and 14 but officers did not attend, the court heard. Hersborg was caught by police wearing black gloves and had black plastic bags lining the seats. When asked what he was doing, Hersborg claimed he had gone for drinks but felt like he was going to "pass out" on the way home so pulled over. But officers discovered a battery in his pocket and a camera and telescope in his car. Police recovered 68 images and videos that showed a woman in just a T-shirt, a different female sitting in her bedroom and another "seemingly getting dressed". A search was carried out at Hersborg's home and a large quantity of digital devices was seized. He gave no comment in his police interview, except to say he was "sorry for the whole situation". Hersborg is the director of the Central London Osteopathy and Sports Clinic in Old Street. His social media included video of a treatment session with Strictly star Viscountess Emma Weymouth, as well as photos with Oscar-winning actor Mark Rylance and Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood. Hersborg has also worked with Italian Serie A football team Brescia and the Danish Tennis Federation. He has been suspended from practising as an Osteopath by the General Osteopathic Council. Alex Weichselbaum of the Crown Prosecution Service said: "Hersborg operated in plain sight for too long and, having targeted thousands of women over 12 years, we believe the scale and significance of his offending makes him one of London's most prolific voyeurs. "His meticulously planned acts included setting up secret cameras in his clinic and covertly filming women - both in public and when they thought they were in the privacy of their own homes. "Hersborg deliberately abused the trust of his unwitting patients by filming them in intimate positions and targeted strangers for his own sexual gratification. "Women should be free to live their lives without unwanted intrusion – particularly from sexual offenders like Hersborg who deliberately chose to film or photograph them in their most private or intimate moments." 3
