Latest news with #smugglers
The Independent
a day ago
- General
- The Independent
Healey slams ‘shocking' scenes of smugglers picking up migrants ‘like a taxi'
The Defence Secretary has pointed the finger at French authorities after 'shocking' images of migrants being picked up by smugglers 'like a taxi' to be brought to the UK. Hundreds of migrants are thought to have crossed the English Channel in small boats on Saturday, with at least six boats spotted leaving beaches in France. French police officers were seen watching as migrants, including children, boarded at a beach in Gravelines, between Calais and Dunkirk, and authorities were then pictured escorting the boats. French authorities said they rescued 184 people and that numerous boat departures were reported. 'Pretty shocking, those scenes yesterday,' John Healey told the Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programme on Sky News. 'Truth is, Britain's lost control of its borders over the last five years, and the last government last year left an asylum system in chaos and record levels of immigration.' The Defence Secretary said it is a 'really big problem' that French police are unable to intervene to intercept boats in shallow waters. 'We saw the smugglers launching elsewhere and coming around like a taxi to pick them up,' he added. He said 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, for the first time, we've got the level of co-operation needed. '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.' The highest number of arrivals recorded on a single day so far this year was 825 on May 21. This year is on course to set a record for Channel crossings, with more than 13,000 people having arrived so far, up 30% on this point last year, according to analysis of the data by the PA news agency. Sir Keir Starmer's Government has pledged to crack down on small boat crossings including with measures targeting smuggling gangs. A 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.' A Home Office spokesperson pointed to measures to share intelligence internationally, enhance enforcement operations in northern France and introduce tougher rules in its immigration legislation. '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.'
The Independent
a day ago
- General
- The Independent
Migrant daily arrivals top 1,000 for first time this year
More than 1,100 migrants arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel on Saturday, the highest number recorded on a single day so far this year. The latest Home Office figures show that 1,194 migrants arrived in 18 boats, bringing the provisional annual total so far to 14,811. This is 42% higher than the same point last year (10,448) and 95% up from the same point in 2023 (7,610), according to the PA news agency analysis of the data. It is still lower than the highest daily total of 1,305 arrivals since data began in 2018, which was recorded on September 3, 2022. Defence Secretary John Healey said the scenes of migrants being picked up by smugglers 'like a taxi' to be brought to the UK were 'shocking'. He said it is a 'really big problem' that French police are unable to intervene to intercept boats in shallow waters. French police officers were seen watching as migrants, including children, boarded at a beach in Gravelines, between Calais and Dunkirk, and authorities were then pictured escorting the boats. French authorities said they rescued 184 people. Mr Healey said 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 co-operation needed. '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,' he told the Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programme on Sky News. He said Britain has 'lost control of its borders over the last five years'. 'Pretty shocking, those scenes yesterday,' Mr Healey said. He added: 'We saw the smugglers launching elsewhere and coming around like a taxi to pick them up.' Nigel Farage posted a video on X of what appeared to be migrants in a dinghy marked with Saturday's date. The Reform UK leader asked: 'Where are all the women and children?' There were some women and children among those pictured boarding boats in French waters. The UK agreed a £480 million deal with France to beef up its efforts to stop migrants in 2023 under former prime minister Rishi Sunak. It was the latest in a series of agreements with France since 2014 aimed at cracking down on crossings. This year is on course to set a record, with the 14,811 total arrivals so far the highest recorded for the first five months of a year. It has also surpassed the highest total recorded for the first six months of the year, which was previously 13,489 on June 30 last year. In 2024, the number of arrivals did not reach more than 14,000 until July 9 (14,058). Sir Keir Starmer's Government has pledged to 'smash the gangs' behind people-smuggling operations to bring down crossings. A Home Office spokesperson pointed to measures to share intelligence internationally, enhance enforcement operations in northern France and introduce tougher rules in its immigration legislation. '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.'
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
More than 1,000 migrants cross Channel in a day
More than 1,100 migrants arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel on Saturday, the highest number recorded on a single day so far in 2025. The latest Home Office figures showed 1,194 people arrived in 18 small boats. This year could see a new record set, with the number of arrivals so far being the highest recorded in the first five months of a year. On Sky News' Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, Defence Secretary John Healey said Britain had "lost control of its borders over the last five years". The most recent arrivals bring the annual total so far to 14,811, up 42% on this time last year and 95% up from the same point in 2023. Almost 37,000 people crossed the Channel in small boats in 2024 but the highest figures were for 2022, when 45,755 people arrived. The highest daily total of arrivals since data began in 2018 was 1,305, which was recorded on 3 September, 2022. Healey called the scenes of migrants being picked up by smugglers "like a taxi" to be brought to the UK "shocking". He said an agreement was in place with French authorities, who rescued 184 on Saturday, to change the way they worked. "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," Healey added. 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." Additional reporting from PA Media. Follow BBC Kent on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@ or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250. How many people cross the Channel in small boats? Is the government meeting its pledges on illegal immigration and asylum? UK and France in talks over migrant returns deal Home Office
The Independent
2 days ago
- General
- The Independent
Smuggler boats pick up Channel migrants ‘like taxi service' while French police stand by, minister fumes
The defence secretary has hit out at 'shocking' scenes of migrants being picked up by people smugglers "like a taxi" to be brought to the UK on dangerous small boats while French police stand by. A furious row has erupted over the lack of action after more than 1,000 people are thought to have crossed the channel in a single day on Saturday. French police officers were seen watching as migrants, including children, boarded at a beach in Gravelines, between Calais and Dunkirk, while authorities were then pictured escorting the boats. John Healey said it was a "big problem" that French police had not intervened to intercept the boats in shallow waters and said ministers were pushing the French government to implement an agreement that they would. The authorities in France had to 'stop these people in the boats, not just on the shore," he added. Mr Healey told the Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips programme on Sky News that the Saturday's scenes were 'pretty shocking'. He added: "(The) truth is, Britain's lost control of its borders over the last five years, and the last government last year left an asylum system in chaos and record levels of immigration." He said it is a "really big problem" that French police are unable to intervene to intercept boats in shallow waters. "We saw the smugglers launching elsewhere and coming around like a taxi to pick them up," he said. Ministers were pressing the French to put new rules into operation that would allow them to intervene. "They're not doing it, but, but for the first time for years, for the first time, we've got the level of cooperation needed,' he said. "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." 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. The highest number of arrivals recorded on a single day so far this year was earlier this month, on May 21, when the number was 825. Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to crack down on crossings, including with measures targeting smuggling gangs. A 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." Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said that Saturday was a 'day of shame for Labour' as he claimed the party had 'completely lost control of our borders'. 'So far, this is already the worst year on record. Labour have failed on every front, and Britain is paying the price,' he added.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Healey slams ‘shocking' scenes of smugglers picking up migrants ‘like a taxi'
The Defence Secretary has pointed the finger at French authorities after 'shocking' images of migrants being picked up by smugglers 'like a taxi' to be brought to the UK. Hundreds of migrants are thought to have crossed the English Channel in small boats on Saturday, with at least six boats spotted leaving beaches in France. French police officers were seen watching as migrants, including children, boarded at a beach in Gravelines, between Calais and Dunkirk, and authorities were then pictured escorting the boats. French authorities said they rescued 184 people and that numerous boat departures were reported. 'Pretty shocking, those scenes yesterday,' John Healey told the Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programme on Sky News. 'Truth is, Britain's lost control of its borders over the last five years, and the last government last year left an asylum system in chaos and record levels of immigration.' The Defence Secretary said it is a 'really big problem' that French police are unable to intervene to intercept boats in shallow waters. 'We saw the smugglers launching elsewhere and coming around like a taxi to pick them up,' he added. He said 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, for the first time, we've got the level of co-operation needed. '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.' The highest number of arrivals recorded on a single day so far this year was 825 on May 21. This year is on course to set a record for Channel crossings, with more than 13,000 people having arrived so far, up 30% on this point last year, according to analysis of the data by the PA news agency. Sir Keir Starmer's Government has pledged to crack down on small boat crossings including with measures targeting smuggling gangs. A 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.' A Home Office spokesperson pointed to measures to share intelligence internationally, enhance enforcement operations in northern France and introduce tougher rules in its immigration legislation. '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.'
