Nigel Farage has predicted as many as 100,000 migrants could arrive in Britain this year.
The UK authorities brought 386 people ashore from 12 boats on Monday, while another 162 people on seven boats were intercepted by the French, which includes one boat on Sunday.
This means that more than 4,500 people have been brought to the UK since the start of the year, according to figures collated by the PA news agency.
And Mr Farage predicts numbers will increase massively in the summer.
He told Dan Wootton: "I've been calling this now for a couple of years.
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"I went out into the Channel in May 2020 and I gave some very dire warnings.
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"We are looking now at something way, way bigger than that ,we are looking now at the possibility of 60-100,000 people coming this year."
After touring the country with the Farage at Large tour, he also believes the rise in migrants will affect the red wall seats of the Conservatives."
"When I've been out round the red wall seats the anger at what is going on here is quite extraordinary.
"The council house waiting list is well over a million young people just aren't being given a fair shot.
"Nobody ever gets deported anymore, there are some in our judiciary that tell us we shouldn't even call them illegals.
"Many people living on the Kent coast and East Sussex too are scared of what's going on.
"All we're doing is acting as a taxi service for illegal criminal gangs.
"It's like there's a great big sign on the White Cliffs of Dover saying everyone's welcome."
Minister for justice and tackling illegal migration Tom Pursglove said: “The rise in dangerous Channel crossings is unacceptable.
“Not only are they an overt abuse of our immigration laws but they also impact on the UK taxpayer, risk lives and our ability to help refugees come to the UK via safe and legal routes. Rightly, the British public has had enough.
“Through our Nationality and Borders Bill, we’re cracking down on people-smugglers and fixing the broken system by making it a criminal offence to knowingly arrive in the UK illegally, and introducing a maximum sentence of life imprisonment for those who facilitate illegal entry into our country.”
