Home Office returns 26 migrants to France but 10,000 cross Channel since 'one-in, one-out' deal enforced

Migrants aboard the second group flight touched down in France earlier today.

Further flights to France under this pilot scheme are scheduled to take place over the coming days and weeks.

The Home Office's announcement comes after the successful returns of an additional seven individuals in the last month.

Following the second group flight, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: “These flights mark a turning point in our fight against the criminal gangs exploiting our borders.

"We're delivering on our promise to restore order to our immigration system.

“These group removals send an uncompromising message: if you enter the UK illegally, you face being detained and removed.

"It is not worth the risk. “The failed Rwanda scheme took years and cost hundreds of millions sending just four volunteers.

"We've returned 26 people in a matter of weeks through real action. But this is just the beginning.

"This Government will do whatever it takes to dismantle the smugglers' business model, get people out of expensive hotels, and end the chaos at the border.”

However, Ms Mahmood's comments come after she recently suggested that the "one-in, one-out" deal could work as a deterrent to stop those hoping to cross the Channel.

Speaking last month, Ms Mahmood said: “You start with a small first step and then you ramp up, which is exactly what we're going to be doing.

“I want us to get to a point where the numbers that are being removed are acting as a deterrent and stop people getting on the boats in the first place.”

Despite the Home Office hoping to deter migrants embarking on the perilous 21-mile journey, GB News can reveal that more than 10,000 migrants have crossed the Channel since the deal came into force on August 3.

More than 3,500 crossed the Channel in August, with an additional 5,000 reaching British shores in September.

The People's Channel this week revealed that 1,000 migrants arrived in Dover yesterday, taking the total figure for 2025 past 35,000.

Migrant crossings in the first 10 months of 2025 have already exceeded the 12-month figures for 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2023.

The figure is expected to surpass last year's 36,816 total in the coming weeks, with 2025 edging closer to the record-breaking 45,755 crossings made in 2022.

Sir Keir Starmer’s 16-month total, which now stands at 58,500, is already 8,000 higher than the total accumulated across the almost 22 months that Rishi Sunak spent in power.

The Prime Minister's total is also now around 7,300 behind Boris Johnson’s 39-month overall figure of 65,815.

However, the Home Office has pointed out that removals and deportations stood at 35,000 in Labour's first year in power.

Enforcement activity has also been ramped up, with the National Crime Agency carrying out over 350 disruptions against people-smuggling networks last year, marking a 40 per cent increase on the previous year.

Despite the 13 per cent increase compared to the previous year, just 9,115 were recorded as enforced returns, meaning an overwhelming majority were voluntary returns.