5 godzin temu
French authorities have stopped more than half of small boat crossings in the Channel this year, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has told MPs. Nearly 500 crossings had been "prevented" by French police, with 385 reaching British shores.
Speaking in the Commons, Cooper (Labour) outlined the Government's five tactics to address small boat crossings, including strengthening the border and clamping down on illegal working. Her statement came days after the Government secured a new agreement with France over returning migrants who had arrived on small boats.
French police face gang violence
Cooper said French actions had prevented 496 boat crossings this year, but 385 boats had crossed successfully. It remains unclear whether the prevented crossings figure refers to boats stopped before departure, during crossing attempts, or through other means such as warehouse seizures.
She warned that criminal gangs were operating new tactics, increasing the overcrowding of boats so that more people arrive, and loading them in shallow waters. The Home Secretary described "appalling scenes" of people clambering onto crowded boats in shallow waters and said French police had faced "disgraceful violence" from gang members behind the crossings.
New specialist enforcement officers
Cooper announced that the new action agreed with France includes establishing a new French Compagnie de Marche of specialist enforcement officers. These officers will have stronger public order powers to address increases in violence on French beaches and prevent boat launches before they reach the water.
Some 22,492 people have arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel, according to latest Home Office figures. This is up 57 per cent on this point last year (14,291) and 71 per cent higher than at this stage in 2023 (13,144).
One in, one out exchange system
Last week's agreement saw a deal struck for a one in, one out system that would see a small boat migrant exchange for a legal asylum seeker. No details have been given about how many people will be covered by the scheme, but reports from France have indicated it could initially be limited to around 50 a week - a small fraction of the weekly average this year of 782.
Priority will be given to people from countries where they are most likely to be granted asylum as genuine refugees, who are most likely to be exploited by smuggling gangs and also asylum seekers who have connections to the UK. The accord came at the end of a state visit by French President Emmanuel Macron to the UK.
Conservative criticism over rising numbers
Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp rubbished the idea that progress had been made on the issue. He said statistics showed small boat crossings had risen under Labour, with the 12 months since Labour's election last July seeing a 40 per cent rise year-on-year in terms of crossings.
Philp said Cooper had "no reason to" sound pleased with herself, adding: "A year ago, she promised to smash the gangs, she said again and again that was her plan, indeed it was her only plan. Yet today, there is no mention of what was once her favourite catchphrase." He added that rather than closing asylum hotels, there were 3,000 more people in them than last year, saying she was "setting records, just all the wrong ones".
Government defends border strategy
Cooper replied that the crisis had gone on for 340 weeks under the Conservatives. She said that when Philp was immigration minister, overall migration near trebled and small boat crossings increased tenfold.
The Home Secretary said the Government's plan would involve greater cooperation with other governments, rather than "standing at the shoreline shouting at the sea". She acknowledged it had been "too easy to work illegally in this country for too long", noting that criminal gangs tell people "it will be easy to get a job" and even give discounts to those who work for the same gangs operating in the UK.
(PA) Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
