Channel crossings since Labour came to power top 10,000

More than 10,000 migrants have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel since Labour won the general election.

Home Office figures show 65 migrants made the journey in two boats on Monday, taking the provisional total for the year so far to 23,598.

The latest crossings mean 10,024 arrivals have been recorded since Sir Keir Starmer became Prime Minister on July 4.

The total for 2024 to date is 1% lower than this time last year (23,940) and down 21% on the same period in 2022 (29,783).

The figures come in the wake of Channel deaths over the weekend and as Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced £75 million would be used to boost the number of border security officers amid the Government’s bid to crack down on people smugglers, using money redirected from the scrapped Rwanda deportation plan.

The cash will also pay for hidden cameras and better monitoring technology as the Home Office sets up its new Border Security Command, led by a former police chief, as it aims to speed up investigations and increase the likelihood of successful prosecutions.

Earlier this year, it was also announced that an extra 100 specialist investigators will be allocated to the National Crime Agency (NCA) as part of efforts to curb Channel crossings.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister said during a visit to Rome that he is “very interested” in Italy’s efforts to curb levels of irregular immigration.

The “dramatic reductions” in the number of migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea into Italy is something the Government wants to understand, he added, amid Labour’s efforts to crack down on criminal gangs involved in people smuggling.

But border and security minister Dame Angela Eagle said his meeting with the Italian Prime Minister should not be seen as an endorsement of all her immigration policies, telling Sky News: “But we are meeting a G7 country and a fellow Nato member to see how we can co-operate across border to deal with some of these vile people smuggling gangs.”

The UK will see whether Italian plans to process asylum seekers in Albania works before deciding whether to pursue a similar policy, she suggested.

“Firstly we don’t know whether it will work yet, because it hasn’t started. Much of this has been portrayed currently as if it’s already a success but the fact is that it hasn’t started.

“We will see how it works. But what we have said is that any scheme that we deal with for offshore processing or anything else has to be workable, it has to be cost-effective, and it also has to be in line with international law,” she told Times Radio.

The latest deaths in the Channel came as more than 1,000 made the journey over the weekend.

The French coastguard said 53 migrants were on board a boat which crashed into rocks overnight on Saturday into Sunday off the coast of Ambleteuse in the Pas-de-Calais region of northern France.

Most of the group were rescued, with six people including a 10-month-old baby who had hypothermia taken to hospital, but eight men died.

More than 200 people were rescued from the Channel in a 24-hour period between Friday to Saturday, according to the French coastguard.

The tragedy is less than two weeks after another boat was ripped apart as it made its way across the Channel, claiming the lives of 12 people including a pregnant woman and six children.

Downing Street said the Government was tackling the crossings “on all fronts” and “immediate work has been taking place”.

This includes “starting to process asylum cases again where people have been sat in hotels without their cases being looked at” and 3,000 migrants being returned over the summer, a spokeswoman added.

Published: 17/09/2024 by Radio NewsHub