More than 1,000 migrants crossed the English Channel in small boats over the past 24 hours, reportedly marking the largest surge in illegal arrivals in weeks and renewing pressure on Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour government to get control of Britain’s borders.
According to British and French authorities, more than 600 people reached the United Kingdom on Thursday, while another 400 either landed or were still en route across the Channel by Friday morning. The crossings resumed after a two-week pause brought on by poor weather, which had temporarily disrupted people-smuggling operations along the French coast.
In one harrowing incident on Thursday, a vessel carrying 94 migrants broke apart just four miles off the French port city of Dunkirk.
French maritime officials said all passengers were rescued, but three were hospitalized and treated for hypothermia. The episode underscored both the persistent danger of these crossings and the failure of governments on both sides of the Channel to deter them.
The latest wave brings the total number of arrivals this year to approximately 38,000 — surpassing the 36,816 who crossed during the entirety of last year. The numbers have cast doubt on Labour’s promises to deliver what Starmer once called “a fair and firm” immigration system.
The surge also comes as frustration mounts among British taxpayers over the soaring cost of housing those who enter the country illegally. Reports indicate that the government is spending roughly £108 million a month — about $142 million — to accommodate migrants in hotels across the country. Many of those facilities are in small towns and rural areas, where local residents have complained of strained services and rising crime.
Meanwhile, deportations remain vanishingly rare. Official figures show that since 2020, the United Kingdom has deported only about 0.5 percent of boat migrants — fewer than one in 200. Critics say this record has emboldened smugglers and signaled to would-be migrants that the risk of removal is minimal.
“The system has completely broken down,” said one former immigration official. “We’re spending billions managing a problem that could be prevented with serious enforcement and deterrence.”
Starmer’s government has faced particular criticism for abandoning the previous Conservative administration’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda. The policy, though controversial, was credited by many experts with helping to slow crossings in 2023. Upon taking office in mid-2024, Starmer’s Labour Party scrapped the deal, calling it “immoral” and “ineffective.” Since then, crossings have risen sharply.
The issue has also exposed divisions within Labour. Some prominent figures, including former Prime Minister Tony Blair’s longtime adviser Alastair Campbell, had touted the recent lull in Channel crossings as evidence that the problem was “under control.” The renewed surge has undercut that claim, leaving the government to explain why its softer approach has not produced results.
For now, the images of overloaded boats and freezing migrants continue to dominate headlines — a stark reminder that Britain’s border crisis is far from over.
[READ MORE: Official Collapses in Middle of Oval Office During Major Drug Announcement]
