“`html
The number of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats has surpassed 50,000 since Labour assumed power last summer.
According to Home Office data, a total of 50,271 individuals have undertaken the perilous journey, with 474 migrants arriving on Monday alone.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson acknowledged public “frustrations” and asserted the government’s commitment to “turn this around.”
During the general election, Labour pledged to dismantle people-smuggling networks and curtail Channel crossings. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch dismissed Tuesday’s figure as evidence that Labour’s plan “was just a slogan.”
In a separate incident, French authorities confirmed the death of a woman attempting to board a vessel destined for the UK on Monday.
The deceased, believed to be in her 30s, reportedly died on Malo beach in Dunkirk, according to Utopia 56, an organization providing support to displaced migrants at the French border.
Local media sources indicate the incident occurred at approximately 4 a.m. Monday morning, with French authorities reporting that resuscitation efforts by emergency services at the scene proved unsuccessful.
The Home Office has acknowledged awareness of the incident but has declined to comment further.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM), a UN agency, estimates that at least 20 individuals have perished this year while attempting to cross the Channel. These figures encompass individuals who died en route to a crossing point due to factors such as car accidents or medical emergencies.
Elsewhere along the French coast, officials reported rescuing 166 individuals attempting to cross the Channel in four separate operations on Monday.
The region’s maritime prefect stated that some migrants declined rescue, leading to the decision, “given the structural fragility of the boats, not to force them to board rescue vessels and to let them continue their journey” toward the UK.
Official figures released Tuesday confirmed that the number of small boat crossings since Labour’s assumption of power on July 5 of the previous year surpassed 50,000 by Monday, August 11.
This represents an increase of over 13,000 compared to the same period the previous year, with 36,346 migrant crossings in small boats recorded between July 5, 2023, and August 11, 2024.
This is not the first time 50,000 people have crossed the Channel during a 403-day period.
Between 8 October 2021 and 14 November 2022, under the previous Conservative government, there were 53,587 arrivals by small boat.
More migrants crossed the Channel between January and August 2025 than in the same period last year.
Government sources say there were an unusually high number of days with calm and warm weather at the start of this year, which partially contributed to the high number of crossings.
Politically the 50,000 milestone is deeply uncomfortable for the government, given its promise to smash the gangs that drive the small boat crossings – a key pledge of Sir Keir Starmer’s when he became prime minister.
While on a visit to Derby, Phillipson told the BBC the government had “inherited an enormous challenge” when it comes to border control.
“We will turn this around with the extra measures that we’re putting in place,” she said.
The government has pointed to its “one in, one out” returns deal with France as a deterrent.
The pilot will see the UK return some migrants to France in exchange for receiving the same number of asylum seekers who are believed to have legitimate claims.
Last week, a government source told the BBC several dozen migrants had been detained under the UK’s new agreement with France so far, but did not provide a specific number.
The first returns are due to happen within weeks – but the initial numbers are expected to be small.
Dunkirk’s mayor, Patrice Vergriete, criticised the scheme, saying it would “only increase risk-taking and tension on the entire coastline of the region”.
Speaking after Monday’s fatal incident, he said the “absurd, ineffective and terribly cruel management of the migration crisis” could not continue.
The Tories – who have said the returns scheme will not work – accused Labour of overseeing the “worst illegal immigration crisis in our history”.
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said the government had “surrendered our borders” and “created the conditions for chaos, leaving the British people to foot the bill”.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said: “As I predicted five years ago, unless we deport illegal migrants the invasion will be huge. 50,000 since this weak prime minister took office and there is no sign of it stopping.”
Meanwhile, Kevin Saunders, former Chief immigration officer at Calais for UK Border Force until 2016, told BBC Radio 4’s PM programme Labour’s returns deal was a “novel idea” but he would “wait and see” if it worked as a deterrent or not.
He referenced the previous government’s Rwanda scheme, which would have seen asylum seekers who entered the UK illegally sent to the African country, saying he “would have liked to have seen it given a chance”.
“It could have worked,” he said, adding “the feeing among the migrants was they weren’t going to risk it”.
Government sources argue there is no silver bullet to bring the numbers down but insist a series of practical changes, such as measures to tackle illegal working and deport foreign criminals more quickly, are part of a wider plan to address the problem.
Government minister Baroness Smith earlier said the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, which is going through Parliament, would give ministers greater powers to “challenge the gangs”.
Other measures announced include prison sentences of up to five years for criminals advertising illegal Channel crossings online, and increased funding for more National Crime Agency officers.
The latest moves also come in the wake of a series of protests and counter demonstrations outside UK hotels which are used to house asylum seekers.
“People do not cross the Channel unless what lies behind them is more terrifying than what lies ahead,” said Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council charity.
The charity’s frontline workers say the men, women and children travelling in small boats are “often fleeing places like Sudan, where war has left them with nowhere else to turn”, he added.
“To stop smugglers for good, the government must expand safe and legal routes, such as allowing family members to travel to be with their loved ones who are already settled in the UK,” he said.
“Without these measures, desperate people will continue to take dangerous journeys, and the criminal gangs are likely to simply adapt their approaches.”
Sign up for our Politics Essential newsletter to keep up with the inner workings of Westminster and beyond.
The former Holiday Inn Express in Hoylake currently houses families rather than single men.
There is a risk of community tensions escalating in Epping, the authority says.
Many fear they could lose the long-standing support that sustained the community after the current Dalai Lama passes away.
The Home Office awards the council more funding after a surge in demand for support.
The Home Office says it believes it has enough properties in the region for asylum seekers.
“`