BBC Verify Live: What impact could small boat sanctions have?
Date: 10:58 BST
Title: Fact-checking claims about small boats
Content: Lucy GilderBBC Verify journalist
People who cross the English Channel in small boats are yet again a big talking point, following the government's announcement of a sanctions policy against people smugglers.
On Verify Live we'll be bringing you the latest analysis of small boat arrivals throughout the day and listening out to fact-check claims made by politicians.
Small boat arrivals have reached a record high for this time in the year - as we've been monitoring in our asylum pledges tracker.
The government publishes daily figures, external on the number of people crossing the Channel in small boats. As of 20 July, 23,534 people had arrived in the UK so far this year, up by about 50% on the same period last year.
In addition, nearly 14,000 'preventions' have been recorded by French authorities in 2025. This a broad category that includes people prevented from crossing, people arrested for facilitating the crossings, and occasions when small boat equipment has been found.
Update:
Date: 10:17 BST
Title: Tuesday's BBC Verify Live
Content: Tom EdgingtonBBC Verify live editor
Hello and welcome to today's
BBC Verify Live page. This is what our fact-checkers and verification experts
are prioritising this morning:
Remember, if there's anything
you want BBC Verify to look into you can get in
touch using this form.
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