Hundreds of migrants attempted to cross the English Channel to reach Britain in dinghies, with over 700 believed to have made the perilous journey on Wednesday. This surge occurred just 24 hours after the Prime Minister defended the government's handling of the crisis, stating that boat crossings were "down quite significantly year on year."
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp observed departures from a beach in northern France, where he reported that French gendarmes appeared to have orders not to intervene directly, but rather to instruct migrants against making the dangerous crossing. Philp described witnessing over 100 migrants gathering in shallow waters before boarding an overloaded inflatable bound for the UK. He also noted what he described as people traffickers employing a new tactic of launching boats simultaneously from multiple locations along the French coast.
According to unofficial estimates, approximately 570 migrants had arrived in Dover by Wednesday evening, with at least three more dinghies still en route across the Strait. One of the vessels was reported to have departed from Belgian waters. These crossings began in the early hours of Wednesday, shortly after the Prime Minister had expressed confidence in the effectiveness of current measures.
Philp confronted a gendarme, questioning why migrants were allowed into the water. The officer reportedly replied that their orders were to let them proceed, only advising them against the dangerous action. Philp also confronted an individual on a dinghy, whom he identified as a potential people smuggler, stating they were committing criminal offenses by attempting to enter the UK illegally. Philp asserted that the witnessed scenes demonstrated the failure of the Home Secretary's new £662 million agreement with the French government, which was intended to reduce dinghy departures through enhanced patrols and tougher tactics.
He further criticized Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, stating she had paid "half a billion pounds of our money unconditionally" while gendarmes reportedly took no physical action. Philp also accused Prime Minister Andy Burnham of being out of touch for suggesting there was no problem with the crossings, referencing Burnham's recent comments defending the government's approach.
Migrants were observed running to the water's edge at Gravelines, a location between Dunkirk and Calais, to board dinghies. Departures were also reported as far south as Dieppe. Last year saw the second-highest number of crossings on record, with 41,500 arrivals. In contrast, prior to Wednesday's unconfirmed total, 13,376 arrivals had been recorded this year, a 45 percent decrease compared to the same period last year. The highest single-day total for this year was 710 on June 15. Since the crisis began in 2018, a total of 205,986 migrants have reached Britain via small boats.