Latest news with #ChannelCrisis
Telegraph
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
From Dunkirk's ‘Little Ships' to today's ‘small boats'
Sometimes, events provide a metaphor for the state of British politics that is simply too perfect to pass up. On Wednesday, a flotilla of 'Little Ships' set out to cross the English Channel in commemoration of the 85th anniversary of the rescue of British forces from Dunkirk. Regrettably, their journey was disrupted by the present-day exodus from the beaches of northern France when Border Force and the French Navy insisted on a one-nautical-mile exclusion zone for a single migrant boat. It is hard to think of a better illustration of the absurdities imposed on the British people by Sir Keir Starmer's failure to get a grip on the Channel crisis. The costs of the uncontrolled flow of migration from the beaches of France continue to mount, with taxpayers paying roughly £4.6 million each day for their accommodation, and there is little prospect of this flow ending. While the Germans were unable to halt the small boats in 1940, the French are unwilling to stop them in 2025. The British state, meanwhile, appears essentially content with letting things carry on as they are. Sir Keir's pledges to 'smash the criminal gangs' and to establish 'return hubs' carry little weight when set against his actions, and in particular the decision to gut the Rwanda scheme, which could have functioned as a possible deterrent. There should be little surprise in Downing Street, then, at modelling which predicts arrivals hitting a new record high this year, or at tumbling support from a population tired of excuses rather than solutions. Unless Sir Keir is willing to come up with a genuine policy for dealing with the Channel crisis, Labour stands little chance of re-election.
Daily Mail
18-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Revealed: The countries where asylum claims into 'soft-touch' Britain have rocketed 200-fold in two decades
The 'absurd' reality about asylum claims in Britain is today laid bare in extraordinary detail. Fuelled by the small boats crisis plaguing the Channel, a record 108,000 applications were lodged in 2024. Claims from dozens of countries, including Afghanistan and Iran, have doubled over the last 20 years. MailOnline can reveal that the UK has even recorded a 200-fold explosion from three nationalities. Just one citizen from Tajikistan, a former Soviet state, tried to claim asylum in Britain in 2004, according to Home Office statistics. This exploded to 380 in 2024, marking the biggest percentage increase of all the nations tracked. The full findings of the third chapter of our ongoing investigation into asylum seeker claims can be viewed below in our interactive map. Dating back to 2004, it lists how many applications have been registered from 200-plus countries. Our analysis comes after Keir Starmer this week warned that mass immigration risks making Britain an 'island of strangers'. Scrambling to blunt the threat of Reform, the Prime Minister vowed to give Brits what they had 'asked for time and time again'. He unveiled a package to 'take back control of our borders'. MailOnline last week exposed how one council in Britain is housing 600 times more asylum seekers now than a decade ago. Before that, we revealed citizens in the US, Australia and even Scandinavia are trying to claim asylum here – despite already residing in wealthy Western countries that are free of major human rights abuses. The Centre for Migration Control said our latest analysis – chronicling the increase in applications nations all over the world – was proof people now view Britain as a 'soft touch just waiting to be exploited'. Robert Bates, of the think tank, added: 'It is absurd that we allow our generosity to be abused to such an extent. 'The system is in chaos, costing us billions. 'The only way to restore order is to freeze future asylum applications and ramp up the deportation of those who entered illegally.' Taking aim at Sir Keir, Mr Bates added: 'Labour doesn't have any answers to this crisis and will continue to allow our borders to be eroded by activist judges blocking deportations on spurious "human rights" grounds. 'Britain is diving headfirst into a future of division and tension as a result.' Alp Mehmet, of Migration Watch UK, said: 'We have long been seen as a soft touch, with good reason. What is an asylum seeker? Asylum is protection given by a country to someone fleeing from persecution in their own country. An asylum seeker is someone who has applied for asylum and is awaiting a decision on whether they will be granted refugee status. An asylum applicant who does not qualify for refugee status may still be granted leave to remain in the UK for humanitarian or other reasons. An asylum seeker whose application is refused at initial decision may appeal the decision through an appeal process and, if successful, may be granted leave to remain. 'The bulk of those applying for asylum are now entering legally, with a minority coming illegally across the Channel. The latter, mostly young men, once here, are unlikely ever to be removed and that's why they come.' Asylum claims aren't just made by new arrivals but also by foreign nationals who may have been in Britain for years. Pakistan was the most common country of origin (10,542), followed by Afghanistan (8,508), Iran (8,099), Bangladesh (7,225) and Syria (6,680). Those five countries alone made up 38 per cent of all asylum applications last year. Yet Tajikistan, which has been controlled since 1994 by long-standing dictator Emomali Rahmon – an ally of Russian despot Vladimir Putin, topped the table in terms of biggest percentage increase. The mountainous nation, tucked in central Asia has an 'abysmal' record, according to the Human Rights Watch (HRW). Tajik authorities have jailed critics of the Government, including opposition activists and journalists, on politically-motivated grounds. There has also been a crackdown on conservative Muslims since Tajik men were arrested and charged with a terrorist attack on a Moscow concert hall in March 2024. Behind Tajikistan, in terms of the biggest increases since 2004, came the Stateless group (from two in 2004 to 564 in 2024) and Nicaragua (one in 2004 to 122 in 2024). Included within the Stateless category are the Bidoon – an Arab minority considered 'illegal residents' by the oil-rich Gulf state of Kuwait. When it gained independence from Britain in 1961, Kuwait did not class the Bidoon as citizens. At the time they made up around a third of the country's population. From the mid-1980s onwards the Kuwaiti government began to view Bidoon as a security threat, particularly because some incoming refugees from Saddam Hussein's Iraq were trying to avoid military service by posing as Bidoon. The Minority Rights Group says: 'Due to their stateless status, Bidoon face difficulties in obtaining civil documents, finding employment, and accessing healthcare, education, and other social services provided to Kuwaiti citizens. 'As a result, many live in relative poverty and are relegated to working in the informal sector.' Kuwait also had an increase in asylum claims of 3,600 per cent, rising from 52 in 2004 to 1,936 in 2024. The official Home Office guidance on the Bidoon states all cases must be considered on their individual facts, with the onus on the person to demonstrate they face persecution or serious harm. In January, an asylum seeker from Kuwait was jailed after he fractured a bride-to-be's spine three weeks before her wedding by crashing an uninsured vehicle into her while speeding away from the police. Behind Tajikistan and Stateless, Nicaragua experienced the next biggest rise in applications to Britain. Nicaragua, the largest country in Central America, has seen democratic backsliding since 2006, and is now widely described as an authoritarian dictatorship. Under the presidency of Daniel Ortega, the country has had a growing climate of repression, intimidation, and harassment due to a policy of arbitrary arrests and exiling. To be eligible for asylum, the Home Office says: 'You must have left your country and be unable to go back because you fear persecution.' This could be based on race, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation or political opinion, or any other factor that places them at risk in their country. Only once asylum seekers are granted refugee status or another humanitarian cover are they allowed to work, study and claim benefits in the UK. In total, 80 countries out of a total of 211 reported a doubling of applications between 2004 and 2024. Eighteen of these saw rates rocket by 20-fold. The analysis, however, understates the true scale of the issue because 31 countries are now taking asylum seekers where they weren't previously. For instance South Sudan, created in 2011, had 359 applications lodged in Britain in 2024. However, citizens from 50 countries are now lodging fewer applications to Britain. Home Office data shows asylum claims have spiralled to all-time highs in the wake of the small boats fiasco, with 108,000 applications lodged in 2024. Pakistan was the most common country of origin (10,542), followed by Afghanistan (8,508), Iran (8,099), Bangladesh (7,225) and Syria (6,680). Those five countries alone made up 38 per cent of all asylum applications last year. On average in 2024, 53 per cent of applications were refused at initial decision – not counting withdrawals. When an application is refused at initial decision, it may be appealed. Between 2001 to 2021, around three-quarters of applicants refused asylum at initial decision lodged an appeal and almost one third of those appeals were allowed. While waiting for their case to be heard, they are housed in state-provided accommodation, such as hotels, although that process can take months. Asylum seekers which have been completely refused are meant to be deported by the Home Office, but these are often expensive and subject to severe delays. There have been a number of high-profile cases of former asylum seekers being allowed to stay due to extremely controversial reasons. One such case from earlier this year involved an immigration tribunal appeal ruling that an Albanian criminal would be allowed to stay because his son had a 'distaste' for foreign chicken nuggets. Britain's small boats crisis has fuelled the growing toll, with tens of thousands having trekked across the Channel seeking a better life since 2018. Small boat arrivals now make-up nearly a third of all asylum claims. Others arrive through legal routes such as on a student visa before they lodge an application. The topic of where asylum seekers are housed has been a huge topic of controversy. In the Runcorn by-election, where Reform narrowly beat Labour by six votes, both parties promised to close a 425-bed hotel in the constituency that was being used by the Home Office to house asylum seekers. Locals in the Cheshire town claimed crime had increased in the area since it started housing asylum seekers in 2020. Residents in Hartlepool, Swansea and Coventry also railed against the negative consequences of the influx, saying it has heaped pressure on housing, GPs and dentists. As well as getting free accommodation, asylum seekers are also entitled to UK taxpayer-funded NHS healthcare, prescriptions, dental care and children under 18 are required to go to school (where they may be able to get free meals). If their accommodation provides meals each person gets £8.86 per week, this rises to £49.18 per week if no meals are provided. Extra money is also provided to pregnant mothers and young children. Under Number 10's long-awaited blueprint to curb immigration, skills thresholds will be hiked and rules on fluency in English toughened. Migrants will also be required to wait 10 years for citizenship rather than the current five, and face deportation for even lower-level crimes. Graduate visas will be reduced to 18 months, and a new levy introduced on income that universities generate from international students. Requirements that sponsoring institutions must meet in order to recruit international students are also being tightened. Policymakers estimate the government's package will bring down annual inflows by around 100,000. Most grants of refuge have historically come via the UK's in-country asylum process. Others, however, have come through resettlement schemes involving nations such as Ukraine, Syria, Hong Kong, and Afghanistan. Citizens who arrive in these situations are not recorded in the asylum figures. A Home Office spokesperson said: 'The majority of these increases occurred under the previous government, there are multiple factors contributing to an increase in asylum applications globally over time. 'We inherited an asylum system in chaos, and have taken immediate action by increasing asylum decision making by 52 per cent and removing 24,000 people with no right to be here, meaning there are now fewer asylum hotels open than since the election. 'By ending the use of hotels, we are also forecast to save the taxpayer £4billion by the end of 2026.'
Daily Mail
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
JASON GROVES: It was 22C in Tirana, but decidedly frosty as PM's humiliation became clear
Keir Starmer 's plan to develop migrant 'return hubs' in the Western Balkans was drawn up in tight secrecy. Labour strategists had hoped to generate the kind of big news splash that would cut through to voters and convince them he is finally getting serious about the crisis in the Channel. Downing Street officials were so nervous about the news dribbling out early and lessening the impact of the story that they deliberately misled travelling journalists, telling them that the issue was 'not on the table' during the trip to Albania. That meant that, while it was 22C in the capital, Tirana, yesterday, the mood was already decidedly frosty. Unfortunately, the cloak of secrecy appears to have extended to Albanian prime minister Edi Rama, who vetoed his country's involvement in the scheme just an hour after it was announced. At a humiliating joint press conference with Sir Keir, Mr Rama said he had been 'very clear' with anyone who had bothered to ask that a similar deal with Italy had been a 'one-off'. Sir Keir was then forced to tell reporters that he would only announce the countries interested in the deal 'at the appropriate time'. The sense of farce was heightened when the PM failed to confirm he would be staying on to fight the next election – prompting a flurry of speculation about his future before officials managed to manufacture an opportunity for him to answer the question again so he could 'clarify' his intention to stay on. Government officials tried to play down the fiasco last night, saying they had never planned to do a deal with Albania. Which rather raises the question of why Sir Keir chose to become the first British PM to visit the Balkan state to announce the plan. Officials insist other countries in the Balkans and beyond remain interested in the idea of taking failed asylum seekers in return for cash. We shall see. But in any case, the plan for return hubs looks likely to have only a marginal impact on the problem at hand. The last government's Rwanda scheme, which was frustrated by Sir Keir at every step, was designed to break the link between getting on a dinghy in France and building a new life in Britain. Channel migrants would have been flown to Africa with no opportunity ever to claim asylum in the UK. The new proposal is much more modest. Asylum seekers will be deported to a 'return hub' only when they have exhausted all possible avenues for appeal – a process that can take months or even years. Those from countries which are not deemed safe, such as Afghanistan, will not be involved because there is no prospect of them ever being sent home. The scheme has some potential merit. Those failed asylum seekers who seek to frustrate their removal through tactics such as claiming to have lost their identity documents, could be removed to a third country while the issue was sorted out. This would deny them the opportunity to try to find a new way of staying in the UK, such as marrying or fathering a child. But the number of cases is likely to be a drop in the ocean even if it ever gets off the ground. Even this moves Sir Keir well outside his comfort zone. The reality of trying to calm public anger over the Channel crisis has forced the former human rights lawyer to contemplate ideas he would once have condemned out of hand. But on the evidence of yesterday's embarrassment in Tirana, he has a long way to go yet before he can present a sceptical electorate with a convincing plan.
Daily Mail
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
UK to use drones to tackle migrants in Western Balkans
New drone patrols in the Western Balkans will be paid for by the UK in a desperate bid to slash the number of illegal migrants making it to the English Channel. Sir Keir Starmer travelled to Albania last night before talks today on building co-operation aimed at closing down one of the main routes for migrants trying to enter Europe illegally. He is also expected to discuss Albania's part in a radical scheme designed to 'offshore' the processing of thousands of migrants landing in Italy – an initiative some ministers believe could one day be copied by the UK. The Prime Minister is under pressure to step up action to tackle the Channel migrant crisis following a surge in arrivals since Labour came to power. Arrivals this year have topped 12,000 – a 40 per cent rise from 2024. More than 600 crossed on Monday as the PM was giving his speech vowing a crackdown on immigration. The leap in numbers threatens to make a mockery of Labour's plan to 'smash the gangs', with ministers now resorting to blaming the fine weather for the increase in illegal crossings. But Sir Keir will today insist that progress is being made in tackling the organised crime gangs trafficking migrants to the UK. He will say that working alongside Albania – much of which was started by the last Conservative government – is 'delivering security' in both countries. 'Our joint work to deter, detect and return illegal migrants is further proof that intervening upstream to protect British shores and secure our borders is the right approach,' he will say. 'Every step we take to tackle illegal migration overseas, cripple the criminal networks that facilitate it and stem the finance streams that fund it is delivering safer streets in the UK and reducing the strain on taxpayer-funded services.' The UK is already funding new drones to track migrants being trafficked through the mountainous border region with Kosovo, where vehicle access is difficult. Some are equipped with automatic registration plate recognition cameras – enabling them to spot any British vehicles thought to be linked to Albanian smuggling gangs. The PM will announce plans today to expand the scheme, including more intelligence sharing and new drone patrols on key routes through neighbouring Montenegro and North Macedonia. The Albanian authorities will also be supplied with new forgery detection machines to make it easier to recognise fake passports. The Western Balkans is a key passage for migrants trying to enter the EU. An estimated 100,000 people attempted the route last year, thousands of whom are thought to have crossed the Channel in a bid to get to the UK illegally. More than 12,000 migrants from Albania made their way across the Channel in small boats in 2022 – up from just 50 two years previously. Numbers are down by 95 per cent since Rishi Sunak signed a returns deal with Albania in 2023. Sir Keir will today announce new 'support' designed to help migrants deported from Albania find local jobs instead of trying to cross the Channel again. The Prime Minister will hold talks later with Albania's socialist leader Edi Rama, who won a record fourth term in office in elections last weekend on a platform of taking the former communist state into the EU. He is expected to discuss Albania's 'offshoring' deal with Italy, but sources played down the prospect of a breakthrough. Italy had hoped to process 36,000 Mediterranean migrants a year at camps built in Albania. But the deal signed last year has been mired in legal problems in the Albanian courts. Sir Keir expressed interest in the scheme after discussing it with Italian PM Giorgia Meloni on a visit to Rome last year. Labour scrapped the last government's flagship Rwanda scheme within days of coming to office, despite warnings that efforts to tackle the Channel crisis would fail without a credible deterrent. Ministers have not ruled out schemes to 'offshore' the processing of Channel migrants abroad. But a source said the difficulties with the Albania-Italy deal underlined the fact it would not be 'straightforward'. Meanwhile, Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp last night branded the Prime Minister's trip to Albania 'pure theatre' – and accused him of 'flying out for a handshake in Tirana to claim credit' for previous Tory initiatives. He added: 'If Starmer is so serious about cracking down on illegal migration, he should never have scrapped the Rwanda deterrent before it even started. We have seen from Australia that offshore deterrents work. Yet under Labour, 2025 is already the worst year on record for Channel crossings, with over 12,000 crossings and rising.'
Daily Mail
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Britain will pay for drone patrols in the Western Balkans in Keir Starmer's desperate bid to get a grip on stopping migrants reaching the English Channel
New drone patrols in the Western Balkans will be paid for by the UK in a desperate bid to slash the number of illegal migrants making it to the English Channel. Sir Keir Starmer travelled to Albania last night before talks today on building co-operation aimed at closing down one of the main routes for migrants trying to enter Europe illegally. He is also expected to discuss Albania's part in a radical scheme designed to 'offshore' the processing of thousands of migrants landing in Italy – an initiative some ministers believe could one day be copied by the UK. The Prime Minister is under pressure to step up action to tackle the Channel migrant crisis following a surge in arrivals since Labour came to power. Arrivals this year have topped 12,000 – a 40 per cent rise from 2024. More than 600 crossed on Monday as the PM was giving his speech vowing a crackdown on immigration. The leap in numbers threatens to make a mockery of Labour's plan to 'smash the gangs', with ministers now resorting to blaming the fine weather for the increase in illegal crossings. But Sir Keir will today insist that progress is being made in tackling the organised crime gangs trafficking migrants to the UK. He will say that working alongside Albania – much of which was started by the last Conservative government – is 'delivering security' in both countries. 'Our joint work to deter, detect and return illegal migrants is further proof that intervening upstream to protect British shores and secure our borders is the right approach,' he will say. 'Every step we take to tackle illegal migration overseas, cripple the criminal networks that facilitate it and stem the finance streams that fund it is delivering safer streets in the UK and reducing the strain on taxpayer-funded services.' The UK is already funding new drones to track migrants being trafficked through the mountainous border region with Kosovo, where vehicle access is difficult. Some are equipped with automatic registration plate recognition cameras – enabling them to spot any British vehicles thought to be linked to Albanian smuggling gangs. The PM will announce plans today to expand the scheme, including more intelligence sharing and new drone patrols on key routes through neighbouring Montenegro and North Macedonia. The Albanian authorities will also be supplied with new forgery detection machines to make it easier to recognise fake passports. The Western Balkans is a key passage for migrants trying to enter the EU. An estimated 100,000 people attempted the route last year, thousands of whom are thought to have crossed the Channel in a bid to get to the UK illegally. More than 12,000 migrants from Albania made their way across the Channel in small boats in 2022 – up from just 50 two years previously. Numbers are down by 95 per cent since Rishi Sunak signed a returns deal with Albania in 2023. Sir Keir will today announce new 'support' designed to help migrants deported from Albania find local jobs instead of trying to cross the Channel again. The Prime Minister will hold talks later with Albania's socialist leader Edi Rama, who won a record fourth term in office in elections last weekend on a platform of taking the former communist state into the EU. He is expected to discuss Albania's 'offshoring' deal with Italy, but sources played down the prospect of a breakthrough. Italy had hoped to process 36,000 Mediterranean migrants a year at camps built in Albania. But the deal signed last year has been mired in legal problems in the Albanian courts. Sir Keir expressed interest in the scheme after discussing it with Italian PM Giorgia Meloni on a visit to Rome last year. Labour scrapped the last government's flagship Rwanda scheme within days of coming to office, despite warnings that efforts to tackle the Channel crisis would fail without a credible deterrent. Ministers have not ruled out schemes to 'offshore' the processing of Channel migrants abroad. But a source said the difficulties with the Albania-Italy deal underlined the fact it would not be 'straightforward'. Meanwhile, Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp last night branded the Prime Minister's trip to Albania 'pure theatre' – and accused him of 'flying out for a handshake in Tirana to claim credit' for previous Tory initiatives. He added: 'If Starmer is so serious about cracking down on illegal migration, he should never have scrapped the Rwanda deterrent before it even started. We have seen from Australia that offshore deterrents work. 'Yet under Labour, 2025 is already the worst year on record for Channel crossings, with over 12,000 crossings and rising.'
