People smugglers launch migrant boats into Channel just 48 hours after Labour confirmed £662m French deal

Mark White
Sat, 25 Apr 2026 17:37:57 +0000

Migrant boats have been launched into the English Channel just 48 hours after the signing of a new £662million Anglo-French security deal, GB News can reveal.

In an apparent effort to evade French law enforcement, criminal gangs launched boats some 70 miles south of the area around Dunkirk, where the bulk of migrant activity has taken place in recent months.

It is yet another shift in tactics by the people smugglers as they attempt to outsmart beach patrols.

Exactly a week ago, more than 250 migrants left beaches along the Belgian coast

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It was the biggest single day of illegal migrant activity on Belgium's beaches since the small boats crisis began.

A week on, that activity has shifted much further south, as the gangs and their migrant passengers continue to play cat and mouse with authorities.

Just after 9am today, a migrant boat was spotted leaving a beach near Hardelot, south of Boulogne-sur-Mer.

Gangs have used these more southerly beaches in the past but prefer to launch from areas around Calais and Dunkirk, as the distance to UK waters is at its shortest.

The further south they launch, the more time boats are in the water, and the more dangerous the crossings are.

Five hours after it launched, the first migrant boat made it to UK waters and was intercepted by the Border Force vessel Defender.

After the Defender arrived at Dover harbour, GB News counted 50 migrants as they were led to the nearby Border Force processing centre.

A number of other launches were attempted but failed on Saturday.

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By late afternoon, another migrant boat was spotted after successfully launching from the same area south of Boulogne.

The French patrol ship Abeille Normandie is shadowing the dinghy as it makes its way across the Channel.

The Border Force vessel Volunteer has been dispatched to pick up the illegal migrants onboard when they cross the line into UK waters.

On Thursday, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood was in France to sign the latest controversial deal to give the French hundreds of millions of pounds to boost their border security.

After the previous £500 million three-year deal, the UK Government will now give the French an additional £662million over the next three years.

Ms Mahmood insisted the agreement was a good deal for the UK and would make a positive impact in tackling the smugglers.

The number of French border police will increase from 700 to 1,100.

New equipment, including drones and a specialist boat to tackle so-called migrant taxi boats, will also be provided.

The Home Secretary told GB News there was "no one silver bullet that can end this crisis".

However, Ms Mahmood said she was confident the extra security resources on French beaches will impact the activities of the criminal gangs.

Reform UK continues to voice its opposition to handing France more money to curb Channel crossings.

Zia Yusuf, who was appointed as Reform UK's home affairs spokesman earlier this year, said: "Reform UK would demand a refund, and detain and deport all illegal arrivals."