Two migrants die, 60 rescued as 100 people packed into makeshift boat cross the Channel to Britain
Incident south of Calais raises the Channel-crossing death toll this year to about 25 as the UK-France asylum deal takes effect
Two migrants have died after a makeshift boat carrying about 100 people attempted to cross the English Channel to Britain overnight, south of the beaches of Neufchatel-Hardelot in Calais, according to French authorities.
About 60 people were being cared for after the incident, French officials said. The deaths bring the number of people who have died attempting Channel crossings this year to at least 25.
Records show a record 32,000 migrants have arrived in Britain by crossing the Channel in small boats since January. A Home Office update later this year said the figure had climbed to 32,188, up 28 percent on the same point last year, although the annual tally this year has dipped slightly below the all-time high seen in 2022.
Under Labour's 'one in, one out' deal, the UK can return migrants after arrival if they are deemed ineligible for asylum, including those who have passed through a 'safe country' to reach UK shores. In return, London will accept an equal number of migrants from France who are likely to have their asylum claims granted. The first migrants from France under the deal arrived in the UK on Thursday, including a family of three who completed the online application process, the Home Office said.
Four migrants have so far been sent back to France under the deal — one Indian national, one Eritrean, one Iranian and one Afghan. Since the treaty came into force on August 6, 6,752 small boat migrants have crossed the Channel and reached Britain.
A Home Office spokesman said the UK-France deal is a historic agreement, and these are critical first steps. 'This is a clear message to people-smuggling gangs that illegal entry into the UK will not be tolerated. We will continue to detain and remove those who arrive by small boat. And we will work with France to operate a legal route for an equal number of eligible migrants to come to the UK subject to security checks.'
In Calais, destitute and desperate men from around the world wait in the city’s streets and camps. Red Cross emergency clinics treat illnesses, while the Catholic Church has opened shower blocks. Charities plaster notices in many languages offering arrivals advice on how to access English-speaking lawyers, social services and winter aid. Volunteers deliver meals and water in charity vans, and large water-butts appear outside makeshift shelters.
So far this year, 32,188 migrants have reached Britain by small boat, up 28 percent on the same point last year. But the year’s total remains below the record set in 2022, which saw more than 45,000 crossings.