Figures for illegal ‘small boat’ channel crossings from France to the United Kingdom reached a comparative high point for this time of year, earlier than usual.
After crossings hit the milestone figure of 10,000—again, earlier than expected, a new total of 11,074 has been reached. This marks an increase of 40% on the same period last year (a migrant headcount that reflects only the number of known arrivals).
In 2024, it took two weeks for the numbers to rise from 10,000 to 11,000; this year, the jump in numbers took just four days. Labour Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has blamed the crisis on a recent bout of rare-for-Britain “hot weather.”
Recent local election results in England—where elected representatives have no direct say over immigration policy—reflected public disquiet with the main political parties on the issue. Hapless Tory PM Rishi Sunak promised to “stop the boats” and his Labour successor Keir Starmer has threatened to “smash the gangs”—but the migrant crossings continue.
