Home Office: Record Number of Small Boat Crossings so Far This Year

A record number of migrants crossed the English Channel in small boats in the first three months of this year the Home Office has reported. Some 4,644 migrants have travelled on 98 small boats to gain entry to the UK in 2024 so far. During the same period last year, the number was 3,793 migrants. Home Office figures showed that this year represented an increase of 96 crossings compared with the first three months of 2022, when 4,548 migrants were detected by authorities. Illegal immigration has been a sore point for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who has pledged to stop people crossing the English Channel in small boats. The government’s plan to send illegal immigrants to Rwanda, including those who crossed the English Channel in small boats, has faced multiple legal hurdles over the safety of the scheme....