Latest news with #crossings
Times
6 days ago
- General
- Times
Britain urges France to police its beaches ahead of fine weather
Britain is privately urging France to ensure that its beaches are properly policed next week amid concerns that thousands more migrants will attempt to make crossings. On Saturday a record 1,195 migrants crossed the English Channel in a single day in scenes that were described by Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, as 'disgraceful'. There was footage of a handful of gendarmes looking on from the beach as dozens of migrants ran into the water and scrambled aboard small boats. British law enforcement agencies are concerned that criminal gangs exploited the fact that French police were focused on the Champions League final in Paris on Saturday. The Times has been told that 93 officers were deployed to the capital from northern France. UK officials have been in touch with their counterparts across the Channel to raise concerns about the level of policing. Good weather is expected to lead to further crossings from early next week. The home secretary told MPs on Monday that it was 'disgraceful and unacceptable' that more than 1,195 migrants had been able to cross the Channel in 18 boats on Saturday, marking a daily record high for arrivals this year. The French authorities prevented just 184 migrants from making the journey on that day, despite agreeing in February to amend laws to allow police to intercept boats in shallow waters. Current guidelines prevent French police from intervening offshore unless it is to rescue passengers in distress. In practice, the guidelines mean officers can stop boats leaving the beach by puncturing them, but can do nothing once they are in the water unless the passengers call for help. In recent years, traffickers have exploited the rules by asking migrants to wade waist-high into the Channel, where they are picked up by dinghies launched from further afield, often from inland canals. The dinghies are piloted by smuggling gang operatives who haul migrants on board as police watch from the beach. The government expects the French to implement the change in the next month, ahead of an Anglo-French summit in London in July that will be attended by Sir Keir Starmer and President Macron. In February, Bruno Retailleau, the French interior minister, indicated that he wanted a change in police doctrine to enable officers to intervene in the water up to 300 metres from the coast. 'We have to review our organisation so that we can board these boats … arriving to pick up migrants,' he said. Le Figaro, the French newspaper, said ministry officials were still working on what were being termed the 'feet in the water' guidelines to implement the policy. However, Le Marin, the French maritime daily newspaper, said the proposed change of doctrine had met with fierce opposition, including from local police officers. Among the concerns are logistical issues, such as whether officers are safe wearing body armour in the water and how to protect their weapons once immersed.
Sky News
03-06-2025
- General
- Sky News
Why good weather isn't to blame for small boat crossings
👉 Listen to Sky News Daily on your podcast app 👈 The Home Office says the doubling of good weather days this year compared to the start of 2024 "coincides with small boat arrivals being 46% higher" - but research by Sky's Data and Forensics team shows a rise in crossings during bad weather as well. On today's Sky News Daily, Niall Paterson is joined by Sky News' political correspondent Ali Fortescue and senior data journalist Daniel Dunford to assess what the new data tells us about how well the government's plans to tackle small boat crossings are working and what they have learnt about how the smuggling gangs are adapting.
The Independent
02-06-2025
- General
- The Independent
New 2025 record as nearly 1,200 migrants reach UK in small boats in one day
Nearly 1,200 migrants arrived in the UK on Saturday, crossing the English Channel from France in small boats, new government figures have revealed. The Home Office confirmed that 1,194 migrants made the journey in 18 boats, capitalising on settled weather conditions. This marks the highest number recorded on a single day this year, bringing the provisional annual total to 14,811. The figure is 42 per cent higher than at the same point last year, increasing pressure on the Labour government, which came to power a year ago partly due to public dissatisfaction with the previous Conservative administration's attempts to control the crossings. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has promised to tackle the issue by dismantling the criminal gangs facilitating the crossings. This comes after his government abandoned the Conservative plan to send migrants arriving in the UK through unauthorised channels to Rwanda. Since gaining power, Sir Keir's government has sought better intelligence-sharing internationally, enhanced enforcement operations in northern France and has adopted tougher rules in its immigration legislation. French police officers were seen watching on Saturday as migrants boarded at a beach in Gravelines, between Calais and Dunkirk. Authorities were then pictured escorting the boats. French authorities said they rescued 184 people. "Pretty shocking, those scenes yesterday," Defence Secretary John Healey told Sky News. He added that it is a "really big problem" that French police are unable to intervene to intercept boats in shallow waters, adding that the UK is pressing for the French to put new rules into operation so they can intervene. "They're not doing it, but, but for the first time for years – we've got the level of cooperation needed," he told Sky News. "We've got the agreement that they will change the way they work, and our concentration now is to push them to get that into operation so they can intercept these smugglers and stop these people in the boats, not just on the shore." Despite French and UK efforts, the cross-Channel route, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, remains a major smuggling corridor for people fleeing conflict or poverty. Many migrants favour the UK for reasons of language, family ties or perceived easier access to asylum and work. The Home Office says 36,816 people arrived in the UK on small boats in 2024, 25 per cent more than in 2023 (29,437). The highest number of arrivals was in 2022, with 45,774.
BreakingNews.ie
01-06-2025
- General
- BreakingNews.ie
Hundreds of migrants cross English Channel in small boats
Hundreds of migrants are thought to have crossed the English Channel in small boats on Saturday. At least six boats left France in the first attempted crossings to reach the UK in a week. Advertisement French police officers watched as migrants, including children, boarded at a beach in Gravelines, between Calais and Dunkirk, in the morning. Authorities were then pictured escorting the boats. France has agreed to change its rules so police can prevent people in the water from getting on to boats, but this has not yet come into effect, UK home secretary Yvette Cooper has said in recent weeks. She has been urging the French to make the changes so their maritime forces can intervene in shallow waters as soon as possible, it is understood. Advertisement A British Home Office source said: 'We have developed strong co-operation with the French and it is important that they have agreed to disrupt these boats once they're in the water – and not just on the shore. 'This vital step now needs to be operationalised to protect border security and save lives.' Yvette Cooper (James Manning/PA) The coastguard reportedly issued an appeal for fishing boats to assist a yacht and kayaks in trouble in the Channel as it responded to small boats. Co-ordinating multiple simultaneous incidents is 'not unusual', the coastguard said, stressing that 'at no time was public safety compromised'. Advertisement 'In line with standard procedure, coastguard operations centres may contact vessels in the vicinity of an incident, including fishing boats, to provide assistance if they are best placed to help, regardless of other ongoing operations. 'This is routine practice and does not indicate an absence of search and rescue assets.' The highest number of arrivals recorded on a single day so far this year was 825 on May 21st. This year is on course to set a record for Channel crossings, with more than 13,000 people having arrived so far, up 30 per cent on this point last year, according to analysis of the data by the PA news agency. Advertisement Sir Keir Starmer's government has pledged to crack down on small boat crossings including with measures targeting smuggling gangs. A Home Office spokesperson said: 'We all want to end dangerous small boat crossings, which threaten lives and undermine our border security. 'The people-smuggling gangs do not care if the vulnerable people they exploit live or die as long as they pay, and we will stop at nothing to dismantle their business models and bring them to justice. 'That is why this Government has put together a serious plan to take down these networks at every stage. Advertisement French authorities escort a small boat leaving the beach at Gravelines (Gareth Fuller/PA) 'Through international intelligence sharing under our Border Security Command, enhanced enforcement operations in northern France and tougher legislation in the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, we are strengthening international partnerships and boosting our ability to identify, disrupt and dismantle criminal gangs whilst strengthening the security of our borders.' The UK home secretary previously said gangs have been taking advantage of a higher number of calm weather days to make the journey. UK temperatures hit 26C on Saturday, wrapping up the sunniest spring on record. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said boats were 'flooding the channel', with Border Force 'stretched beyond breaking point, and even fishing vessels drafted in because our maritime rescue services are overwhelmed'. 'A nation reduced to chaos on the high seas while Keir Starmer hides behind platitudes and process. 'Labour has completely lost control of our borders. Their pledge to smash gangs in tatters. They scrapped the Rwanda deterrent before it even began and now the boats won't stop coming. 'So far, this is already the worst year on record. Labour have failed on every front, and Britain is paying the price. This is a day of shame for Labour.'
