Latest news with #Channel
Daily Mail
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Bring back Rwanda scheme to end small boats crisis, says architect of Australia's successful migrant crackdown
The mastermind behind Australia's migrant crackdown has called on Keir Starmer to 'reinstitute' the Rwanda scheme. Alexander Downer called on the Prime Minister to 'eat a bit of political humble pie' and resurrect the scheme, which was scrapped last year in one of Starmer's first acts after being elected into No 10. Sir Keir insisted the deportation scheme was a £700million 'gimmick' which did nothing to cut migrant Channel crossings. But Mr Downer, who was Australia's minister for foreign affairs from 1996 to 2007, claimed the move was a 'tragedy' and believes it could have worked if the legal issues surrounding it 'could be properly addressed'. 'It would have worked assuming the legal issues could be properly addressed — and they were being,' he told the Sun. 'So the easiest thing for them to do would be to eat a bit of political humble pie and reinstitute the Rwanda scheme.' Just earlier this week, Downing Street admitted the situation in the Channel was 'deteriorating' as the number of migrants reaching the UK topped 2,000 in a week for the first time in 21 months. The 2,222 arrivals over seven days meant an average of one migrant reached Britain every four-and-a-half minutes. Mr Downer has previously expressed his belief in having a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to illegal migration. The former foreign minister was one of the masterminds behind Australia's crackdown on illegal immigration in the early 2000s, which sought to punish migrants who arrived on the country's shores by boat. This meant sending them by boat to detention centres in Papua New Guinea and the Pacific island of Nauru, where migrants would be offered to return to their home countries and refugees were told they could resettle in another. 'Once word got round that if you tried to get into Australia by boat you would not be allowed in and would be sent to Papua New Guinea instead, they ran out of customers. The smugglers' businesses closed down,' he previously said. The Tony Abbott government claimed a 90 per cent reduction in maritime arrivals of asylum seekers once the policy was introduced in 2013. There were 207 arrivals in November that year, opposed to 2,629 in November 2012. Starmer has pledged to crack down on smuggling gangs that bring people into the UK in small boats, including by targeting criminal networks overseas. Last month he said the Government would start talks with other countries on 'return hubs' for failed asylum seekers, which would see failed asylum seekers sent for processing in third countries prior to deportation. The PM admitted these would not be a 'silver bullet' for halting the crossings, but the proposal is expected to act as a deterrent. Last week's crossing total was the most since September 2023, when the former Tory government's Rwanda policy was still in legal limbo. It tipped the total since Labour came to power at last July's general election past the 40,000 mark, hitting 40,276. Since the start of this year, 17,034 migrants have reached Britain, up 38 per cent on the same period last year. The figure does not include hundreds more who reached Dover yesterday. Reform leader Nigel Farage said it was 'about time' Britain faced up to the fact it was 'our fault' – rather than France's – that so many migrants head here. 'We will never stop the boats from leaving France,' he told broadcaster Talk.
Telegraph
a day ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
French plan to intercept migrant boats at sea faces legal threat
French plans to intercept people smugglers guiding small boats at sea – so-called 'taxi boats' – could be blocked by legal action. The charity that successfully helped block Dame Priti Patel's plans to turn back migrant boats in the Channel has said it is ready to support any migrants or organisations seeking to mount a court challenge. Care4Calais, which also launched the first legal challenge to the Tories' Rwanda deportation plan, said it had not ruled out mounting a court action itself against the 'dangerous' tactics. The move comes as France prepares to start intercepting migrant 'taxi boats' at sea for the first time. The tactics have yet to be finalised but are expected to see border police, gendarmes and coastguard vessels stop boats from leaving waters within 300 metres of the coastline. It is thought they will aim to intercept the 'taxi boats' packed with migrants not only in shallow waters as they leave the beaches but also when they make their way from rivers and inland waterways, often miles away, to pick up the asylum seekers. Until now, France has refused to intervene in the water because it claims maritime laws prevent it from taking action that could put lives at sea at risk. But government ministers overseeing migration policy have given the green light to do so while 'respecting' the 'law of the sea'. It comes as the number of Channel migrants reaching the UK passed 40,000 since Labour took power last year. Some 489 people arrived in eight boats on Tuesday, bringing the total since the general election in July 2024 to 40,276. A record 17,034 have crossed this year – the highest number at this point since the first arrivals in 2018 and up nearly 40 per cent on the same point last year. Steve Smith, the chief executive of Care4Calais and a former Army colonel, said it would be 'dangerous' to try to intercept the boats even with just a few people-smugglers on board as they steered the dinghies to the beaches to pick up the migrants. 'It would be impossibly dangerous if you were to try to stop them when there are women and children on board or trying to get on board. Some of the drownings that have happened have been very, very close to the coast, within a stone's throw,' he said. 'If it happens when they are not trying to ram you or intercept you, what is going to happen when they do try to do so. It is almost certainly going to result in deaths.' Mr Smith said that if an organisation or individual came forward seeking to mount a legal challenge, 'we would support them and offer advice', as the charity had done in successful legal challenges to the Tories' Rwanda policy and the housing of migrants in the former RAF base at Wethersfield, in Essex. He added: 'It is not beyond the realms of possibility that we take it on ourselves, but it is more likely we would support claimants.' Care4Calais joined the Border Force union and other charities to successfully force the Home Office in 2022 to drop its plans to push back migrant boats at sea after seeking judicial review of the policy for breaching the Refugee Convention, and human rights act. The French interior ministry insisted that any attempts to intercept the 'taxi boats' will respect the principles of the UN Convention on the law of the Sea. It creates a duty for all ship captains to rescue anyone in danger at sea, regardless of their nationality or status. France is aiming for the tactics to be in place in time for the Franco-British summit, which begins on July 8, when Emmanuel Macron, the French president, will travel to London for a state visit.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
French authorities finally promise to intercept small boats in the Channel as shocking figures reveal one migrant reaches Britain every four-and-a-half minutes
French authorities have finally promised to intercept small boats in Channel waters as figures reveal a migrant reached Britain every four-and-a-half minutes last week. A new 'maritime doctrine' set to come into operation next month allows French police officers to block dinghy departures within 300 yards of the shoreline. Currently, they are barred from intercepting any boat once it is in the water. But gendarmes have expressed concerns over their safety when the new policy comes into force. The new rules will be introduced after Channel migrants reaching the UK topped 2,000 in a week for the first time in 21 months, following 489 arrivals on Tuesday. The 2,222 arrivals over seven days meant an average of one migrant reached Britain every four-and-a-half minutes. Police unions are understood to have concerns their members may be required to enter the water wearing 'Kevlar' body armour, which can weigh up to 6lbs and would put them at risk of drowning. Sources said French officers had also raised concerns about being unable to carry firearms if they are required to go into the sea, because salt water would damage the weapons. However, French police colonel Olivier Alary said that his teams 'will be able to do more' once the 300-yard rule comes into force. 'If the rules change to allow us to intervene against these taxi boats, as close as possible to the shore, then we'll be able... to be more effective,' he told the BBC. Marc Musiol, of the police union Unity, said: 'I can understand an average British person watching this on television might say, 'Damn, those police don't want to intervene.' But it's not like that. 'Imagine people on a boat panic and we end up with children drowning. The police officer who intervened would end up in a French court.' He added: 'It's a complicated business, but we can't fence off the entire coastline. It's not the Second World War.' Last week's crossing total was the most since September 2023, when the former Tory government's Rwanda policy was still in legal limbo. It tipped the total since Labour came to power at last July's general election past the 40,000 mark, hitting 40,276. Since the start of this year, 17,034 migrants have reached Britain, up 38 per cent on the same period last year. The figure does not include hundreds more who reached Dover yesterday. Reform leader Nigel Farage said it was 'about time' Britain faced up to the fact it was 'our fault' – rather than France's – that so many migrants head here. 'We will never stop the boats from leaving France,' he told broadcaster Talk. 'They'd need 10,000 soldiers on the beaches to stop every boat from going. The reason they're coming isn't the French's fault, the reason they're coming – it's our fault. It's about time we faced up to that.' His remarks echoed comments from French politicians over recent years which blamed Britain's asylum system, as well as inadequate checks on illegal working, for making this country an 'El Dorado' for illegal migrants. In a new development, people-smuggling gangs have begun delivering inflated dinghies to the shore tied to car roofs rather than inflating them on French beaches, in a bid to reduce the risk of detection by police. It demonstrates how traffickers are constantly evolving their methods. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer cancelled the Tories' Rwanda asylum scheme – which was designed to deter crossings and save lives – as one of his first acts in office. Instead, Labour vowed that investment in law enforcement would solve the crisis. But migrant numbers are soaring and Downing Street this week admitted the situation was 'deteriorating'. A government source said last night: 'Any new tactics to prevent these criminals from facilitating these dangerous journeys are always welcome.' And a Home Office source pointed out: 'On exactly the same days in 2023, 2,375 people arrived – or one every 4.2 minutes – when Rishi Sunak was PM and Robert Jenrick was immigration minister.'
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Labour's migration promises have failed to materialise
The weather is fine and warm, the seas are calm and the small boats crisis is getting worse by the day. Record numbers of immigrants are crossing the Channel to such an extent that even Sir Keir Starmer appears to have noticed. After meeting Emmanuel Macron at the G7 summit in Canada, the Prime Minister conceded that the crisis was 'deteriorating'. Yet he came to power blithely denouncing the last government for failing to 'stop the boats' while junking the one deterrent available to the authorities, namely to remove asylum seekers to Rwanda. He is now reaping the whirlwind of his complacency. If the small boats crisis cast a pall over the last months of Rishi Sunak's premiership it is doing the same for Sir Keir's first year in power. 'Smashing the gangs', like stopping the boats, was a central pledge that has not only failed to materialise but has made the Prime Minister look weak and ineffectual. He made a promise he was unable to keep, a pattern of behaviour among recent political leaders that is more responsible than any for the rise of Reform UK. The latest attempt to salvage this policy involves a vague promise by France to allow its police to enter the water to stop migrants boarding boats. They are not allowed to at the moment and stand by watching the boats being loaded, but a long-promised legal reform could change that. Of course, if migrants were prevented from getting on boats that might well act as a deterrent. But with thousands already waiting on the other side of the Channel, what motive is there for the French to keep them on their shores when they can pass the problem to the British?
The Sun
2 days ago
- Automotive
- The Sun
Peugeot E-Expert Sport is a spacious, speedy modern van that's fun to drive… and it even fits in at Le Mans
THE 24 Hours of Le Mans car park. Every supercar you can think of. Plus moi, in a white van. 2 2 At least I had a top view sat on the roof. Peugeot hasn't added any performance to the new E-Expert Sport. It's the standard 136hp with a 219-mile battery. But it does get a special body kit, Y-spoke 18in alloys, and Kryptonite Green detailing inspired by Peugeot's 9X8 race car. This is the 'Crew Van' version with tons of space for you and five mates to cross the Channel with all your camping gear. Just one pit stop required to get from Dover to the track, sucking up 80 per cent charge in just 45 minutes. Not bad. What's it like to drive? Not as fast as a Le Mans hypercar, obviously. But it's no slouch either. It's fun, with purposeful steering and paddle shifts to control the regenerative braking. Just bang it in sports mode and pretend you're heading down the Mulsanne Straight at top speed – rather than a French autoroute. More importantly, on a road trip, it has all the creature comforts you'd expect from a modern van including a 10in touchscreen that talks to your phone, dual-zone climate control, wireless phone charging and even a heated leather steering wheel. Which you definitely don't get in a World Endurance Championship car. Fernando Alonso drives to victory at the 24 hours of Le Mans in 2018 There's more of Superman's least favourite colour in here, as well as Sport logos in the 'eco-leather' seats which are colourfast, scratchproof and tear-resistant, not to mention 'moisture regulating and acid and alkali resistant'. Given how terrifying it must be driving through the night at Le Mans, it sounds like the sort of stuff they should make racesuits out of. It didn't have a place in the race, but the new E-Expert Sport looked every bit as cool as the race-winning Ferrari, and costs a lot less at £41,295 (ex VAT).
