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According to Interior Ministry statistics, a record number of people illegally crossed the English Channel on Saturday, and at least 828 traveled from France across a congested route with 30 small boats.
Despite the government’s promise to stop the flow of boats, which are often overloaded with semi-rigid inflatables, this summer the numbers continue to exceed the previous year’s numbers.
The latest figures released on August 23 show that more than 12,400 people crossed the channel from France this year. Last year, there were 8,417 people overall.
Prior to 2018, this crossroads accounted for a small proportion of illegal immigrants, and very few are known to achieve it each year.
Dan Omahoney, Secret Channel Threat Commander of the Interior Ministry, said:
“We are working with the entire government, as well as with French and international partners, to address this issue.
“We have doubled the number of police officers on French beaches, prevented more than 10,000 attempts, and secured nearly 300 arrests and 65 prosecutions.”
From the winter of 2018, more and more people are trying to cross. That year, 299 people crossed. Home office figure..
At the narrowest point, 21 miles away, the English Channel is one of the busiest routes in the world.
In the last few years, some people have died trying to cross.
Earlier this month, a 27-year-old man from Eritrea died after he and four others jumped outboard when a boat began to sink into the English Channel.
Among those who died in the area are Rasoul Iran-Nejad and his wife Shiva Mohammad Panahi, who died with three children when the boat capsized on October 27, 2020.
According to the Interior Ministry, when immigrants declined due to pandemic restrictions last year, there were about 16,000 “known illegal immigrations” across the UK.
The definition of “illegal” immigrants is difficult to pinpoint, can be subject to various interpretations and uses, and lacks accurate information on the levels that can be classified as illegal immigrants to the United Kingdom. ..
2007 London School of Economics Report (pdfThe number of “irregular” immigrants living in the UK is estimated to be 533,000, which is less than 1 percent of the population.
PA contributed to this report.
Simon Veazey
Freelance reporter
Simon Veazey is a UK-based journalist who has been reporting on the Epoch Times since 2006 on a variety of beats, from detailed coverage of British and European politics to web-based writing of the latest news.
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