Cross-Channel migrant crossings top 25,000 as UK government vows to 'smash the gangs'

RFI

24 September 2024 at 5:41 am·1-min read

The UK's new Labour government is facing ongoing challenges to curb illegal migrants entering the country, as figures show a slight increase from last year, despite being significantly lower than in 2022.

The number of migrants arriving in the UK by crossing the English Channel in small boats has topped 25,000 since the start of the year.

The provisional figures published on Monday come as the new Labour government – like the previous Conservative administration – struggles to reduce illegal cross-Channel arrivals.

Asylum requests slump as EU borders tighten following shift to far right

Some 717 migrants crossed the Channel from northern France on Sunday, taking the cumulative number of arrivals so far in 2024 to 25,052, according to Britain's interior ministry.

A similar number, 707, also made the crossing on Saturday.

The total represents a four percent rise on the equivalent figure at this point last year, but a 21 percent drop on 2022.

Stopping the small boat arrivals on England's southern shores was a key issue in Britain's general election in July.

'Smash the gangs'

Within days of taking power, Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer scrapped the Conservatives' controversial scheme to deport migrants to Rwanda.

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'Smash the gangs'

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