Britain braces for biggest surge of small boats so far this year as hundreds make their way across the Channel

Such a large surge is unusual for this early in the year, and is normally only seen after the winter months.

People smugglers have taken advantage of an improvement in the weather after conditions had prevented any illegal arrivals for more than a fortnight.

GB News can confirm that early this morning, a total of 10 migrant boats were launched by criminal gangs from French beaches.

Before today, the biggest number of arrivals on a single day this year was 322, who made the crossing in five boats on February 9.

Today's arrivals are likely to take the total so far in 2026 to well over 2,000 - higher than the totals at this point in 2024 and 2025.

GB News can also reveal that more than 4,500 migrants are currently in the make-shift camps around Calais and Dunkirk, waiting for their turn to make the illegal crossing.

A senior maritime source told GB News: "It's quite remarkable that we are now overtaking the totals for the last two years at this point in the year, given the atrocious weather in the Channel in these first two months of 2026.

"And the fact we are seeing huge numbers already gathering in the migrant camps tells you we're likely to be in for another record year of arrivals."
Last year, 41,472 migrants made the illegal crossing from France.

New figures claim French authorities stopped 22,476 migrants from crossing to the UK.

However, GB News has been told only a tiny fraction of this total were the result of interventions by French law enforcement on the beaches of northern France.

The vast majority of the more than 22,000 'stopped' were actually migrant boats that ran into difficulties in French waters because of engine failure, overcrowding or bad weather.

The occupants of those dinghies were then picked up or rescued by French patrols and returned to France.

The revelation will only serve to intensify calls for the UK to stop paying the French to boost their Channel migrant patrols.

So far, the British government has given the French more than £700 million to increase beach patrols and enforcement action against the people smuggling gangs.
Negotiations around the latest security settlement for France are already underway.

As operations continue today to respond to the latest migrant surge, all of those picked up in UK waters are being taken to the Kent port of Ramsgate.

Redevelopment works are still underway to improve berthing facilities at the migrant processing centre in Dover, and are not expected to be completed until later next month.