Record 10,170 people arrive in UK via small-boat Channel crossings this year

[sl8]

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/article/2024/may/25/record-10170-people-arrive-in-uk-via-small-boat-channel-crossings-this-year

Record 10,170 people arrive in UK via small-boat Channel crossings this year

Provisional official figures deal blow to Rishi Sunak’s claim that threat of Rwanda deportation is a deterrent

Harriet Sherwood
Sat 25 May 2024 08.24 EDT

A record 10,170 people have arrived in the UK so far this year after crossing the Channel in small boats, according to government data.

The provisional figure beats the previous record of 9,326 who crossed to the UK by this time in 2017. The comparable figure for last year was 7,326.

Home Office data showed that 467 people crossed the Channel in 10 small boats over the past week, with 288 arriving in five boats on Friday.

The new record is a blow to Rishi Sunak’s claim the government was on track to “stop the boats”, one of his key goals as the country gears up for a general election on 4 July.

[...]

[tanyev]

1. Wait, wasn't Brexit supposed to fix that?

[Emrys]

2. The government will do anything except actually address the problem

Reinstate the agreement offered by the the French to allow pre-processing on the other side of the Channel, reinstate proper mechanisms for legitimate routes to immigration, and put the resources into timely processing of applications for immigration and claims for refugee status with decent, humane conditions for those who have to be accommodated while that happens.

A substantial proportion of that could have been funded by the money wasted on the failed Rwanda caper, which was a non-starter from the get-go.

Chances are we'd end up with productive immigrants who could plug some of the staffing gaps in our public services, industry and agriculture.