France blames BREXIT for Channel migrant surge as Emmanuel Macron's MPs take unprecedented swipe at Labour

As French MPs rage at Brexit Britain... GB News reveals five charts that show people smugglers are 'laughing in the face' of Britons

Five damning charts show the staggering amount of money Channel migrants are costing the British taxpayer, as well as the mouth-watering profits people smugglers are making.

The shock statistics emerged after more than 1,000 migrants crossed the Channel in a single day over the weekend, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer accused of losing "complete control" of Britain's borders.

Graphs produced by the Centre for Migration and Economic Prosperity (CMEP) reveal that the British taxpayer has picked up a £732million bill so far this year to fund Channel migrants in the UK.

They show the month-on-month cost for Channel migrants in the UK so far this year, accounting for the massive figure, with people smugglers making a tidy profit.

But just how much are British taxpayers forced to fork out?

SIGN UP TO GBN MEMBERSHIP AND READ THE FULL STORY HERE

'The world is LAUGHING at Britain!' Zia Yusuf fumes at French officers' inaction as thousands of migrants set sail for Dover

Reform UK chairman Zia Yusuf has laid into French border guards smiling and watching as a flurry of small boats made their way to Britain over the weekend.

"French officers standing on the coast taking photos of the 1200 illegal migrants setting off to cross the Channel. That's what the £480 million of your money the Tories and Labour have paid France to stop the boats buys you," he blasted.

"The world is laughing at Britain."

WATCH IN FULL: Defence Secretary John Healey lays out Strategic Defence Review to MPs

Keir Starmer accused of 'blatant breach' of ministerial code AGAIN - 'Complete disregard for the House!'

Sir Lindsay Hoyle has accused Sir Keir Starmer and Labour of committing a "blatant breach" of the ministerial code over how the Government released details of today's strategic defence review (SDR).

The Speaker said he was "disappointed" how parts of the SDR leaked out over the weekend - as well as how Starmer held a media event on Monday morning, several hours before the document was published in Parliament.

He told MPs: "I'm disappointed once again that the Government appears to have breached the principle set out in paragraph 9.1 of the ministerial code - that when Parliament is in session, the most important announcements of Government policy should be made in the first instance in Parliament."

"The announcement of the SDR was wholly in the Government's discretion and [it is] highly regrettable that ministers have chosen once again to hold a major media event before coming to the House.

"This shows complete disregard for the House and for the honourable members."

The Defence Secretary finally laid out the SDR to the Commons this afternoon - and you'll be able to watch it in full on this live blog shortly.

Yvette Cooper admits criminal gangs have made MILLIONS from this weekend's summer small boat surge 

Criminal gangs have "likely made millions" this weekend following a surge in hot-weather small boat crossings, the Home Secretary has said.

Yvette Cooper told the Commons: "The House will also have seen the disgraceful and unacceptable small boat crossings on Saturday.

"No one should be making these journeys. Criminal gangs will likely have made millions of pounds this weekend alone.

"The gangs are increasingly operating a model where boats are launched from further along the coast and people climb in from the water, exploiting French rules that have stopped their police taking any action in the sea. This is completely unacceptable.

"The previous Government raised this with France for years, but to no avail, and I have raised it with the French Government since the summer.

"The French Interior Minister and the French cabinet have now agreed their rules need to change. A French maritime review is looking at what new operational tactics they will use, and we are urging France to complete this review and implement the changes as swiftly as possible.

"I have been in touch with the French interior minister who supports stronger action again this weekend, and there are further discussions under way this week. I will update the House in due course."

Kemi Badenoch joins Robert Jenrick in pouring scorn on 'blasphemy' conviction for Koran-burning man

Kemi Badenoch has joined Robert Jenrick in pouring scorn on today's "blasphemy" conviction of a man who burned a Koran.

The Tory leader warned that "de facto blasphemy laws will set this country on the road to ruin", adding: "This case should go to appeal.

"Freedom of belief, and freedom not to believe, are inalienable rights in Britain. I'll defend those rights to my dying day."

It comes after her outspoken Shadow Justice Secretary Jenrick said: "This decision is wrong... It revives a blasphemy law that Parliament repealed.

"Free speech is under threat. I have no confidence in two-tier Keir to defend the rights of the public to criticise all religions."

READ THE FULL STORY ON ROBERT JENRICK'S FURY HERE

Labour's grooming gangs 'cover-ups' likened to CATHOLIC CHURCH in furious Tory attack

Labour's handling of Britain's rape gangs scandal has been likened to "cover-ups" in the Catholic and Anglican churches in a furious Tory attack on the Government.

Conservative MP Graham Stuart said: "Senior figures in the Catholic Church and the Church of England were found to have conspired to cover up child abuse by priests.

"Senior figures in the Labour Party are now opposing local inquiries in places like Bradford, London and Wales, and ministers here oppose a national rape inquiry.

"We've also heard from a former member of this House, Simon Danczuk, Labour MP, that he was told not to raise this issue of the ethnicity of some of the perpetrators.

"When will Labour put aside its electoral interests and stand on the side of the abused?"

Labour MPs then shouted "shame on you" at Stuart before Jess Phillips issued a reply.

"I think that the idea that I have ever, or in fact the Prime Minister of this country has ever put anything other than the interests of the victims of grooming gangs at the heart of everything that we have ever worked for, is frankly for the birds," Phillips spat.

She said the number of arrests had increased, and added: "We will continue to pursue these violent, abusive, vicious, abusers through the courts, through justice and I will continue to take my counsel not from him, but from the victims."

Jess Phillips forced to apologise to MPs after Labour BREAKS promise to publish rape gangs plan in May 

Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips has been forced to apologise to MPs after Labour broke its promise to publish its plans for inquiries into Britain's rape gangs scandal.

In late April, Phillips had vowed: "The framework for what local authorities will be tasked with will be released later in May, as will Baroness Casey's review, which I have committed to publishing.

"All those things will be dependent on each other. I cannot stand here and say exactly what that will look like, because I do not know what Baroness Casey will say about any particular area and what I might need to focus on.

"I will go on the basis of facts - something that does not happen very often in this debate, I have to say.

"I will follow the facts; wherever they tell me that there are victims who need help, that is where I will go."

But today - June 2 - she apologised for an apparent delay in publishing the plan, and told MPs that Baroness Casey had requested a "short extension" to her audit.

The peer's review is expected "very shortly", Phillips said.

Reform UK secures LABOUR councillor defection in second coup of the day for Nigel Farage

Reform UK has secured another councillor defection in Scotland - this time, from Labour.

Nigel Farage had hinted at a Labour defector in Aberdeen earlier today after Tory Duncan Massey joined his party, taking Reform's overall count north of the border to 11.

“There have been several Conservative councillors that have come to us, and there’ll be a Labour councillor coming to us this afternoon when we get to Hamilton,” Farage teased at a landmark address in the Granite City this morning.

And now, the party has said it is "delighted" to welcome former Scottish Labour Councillor Jamie McGuire to Reform.

WATCH NOW: Nigel Farage takes aim at John Swinney's 'ridiculous' comments after claiming Reform leader 'doesn't care' about Scotland

Anti-Reform protesters target Nigel Farage event after John Swinney accused of 'incitement'

Nigel Farage has accused Scottish First Minister John Swinney of being "inciteful" after the SNP leader renewed his attack against the Reform UK leader ahead of Thursday's crunch by-election in Hamilton.

Farage and Swinney have traded barbs in recent weeks as voters in Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse prepare to go the polls - even agreeing to a televised debate north of the border.

Reform UK and the SNP believe the contest is a two-way fight, with Labour supposedly falling into a dismal third place.

However, Swinney's criticisms of Farage stem from Reform's alleged "racist" advert against Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar.

Speaking from his press conference in Aberdeen, Farage swatted away the allegations and accepted Swinney and Sarwar's invitations for a televised debate.

The Reform UK leader said: "The more they insult me, the more I know we must be doing something right. I think they're in a blind state of panic. They're chucking around all sorts of insults.

"I thought the First Minister yesterday was, quite frankly, inciteful. But, for today, I will not return the compliment. We will let the public make their own minds up. I'm not going to get involved in a war of words."

He added: “To be frank... Mr Sarwar has a record of obsessing on this issue. There was the famous speech that he gave in the Scottish Parliament saying, why is the judiciary white? Why are, you know, these leading figures in Scotland white? It was the most extraordinary speech given the statistics and figures here.

“Actually, I think that speech that he gave was sectarian in its very nature - you know, we are the South Asian community, we are going to take over the country and take over the world.”

Farage's comments came after a group of anti-Reform protesters gathered in the Granite City ahead of the Clacton MP's landmark statement.

Anti-Reform UK banners were unfurled by around a dozen protesters, including one which stated: “Farage not welcome in Scotland.”

Protesters also chanted: “Let in every refugee, throw Farage in the sea.”

“Farage, Farage we know you, you’re a racist through and through," the demonstrators added.

Two police officers arrived at the scene as the chants began but decided not to take further action.

Farage's visit to Scotland, which will include a stop-off in Hamilton, comes just hours after Swinney last night accused Reform of posing a threat to democracy.

Slow increase in defence spending won’t cut the mustard, ex-Army chief warns

Ex-British Army chief Lord Dannatt has criticised Sir Keir Starmer's timeline for increasing defence spending.

He told Times Radio: “On the face of it... there is going to be a lot of ambition set out in this Strategic Defence Review, much of it very good, much of it describing what we need to do to face the threats to our security.

“But the big issue... is that just moving to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2027 does not cut the mustard in any shape or form. And this rather vague commitment to move to 3 per cent by the end of the next parliament, 2034, it just doesn’t stack up.

“It’s a little bit like saying in 1938 to Adolf Hitler ‘please don’t attack us until 1946 because we are not going to be ready’. Frankly, if we had behaved like that we wouldn’t be speaking English this morning, would we.”

Scotland ‘de-industrialising before our eyes’, Nigel Farage warns

Scotland is "de-industrialising before our eyes" as the SNP pursues net zero policies to the detriment of the oil and gas industry, Nigel Farage has warned.

The Reform UK leader said: “2025 will be a year of record consumption of fossil fuels. We can con ourselves as much as we like. There will be more coal burned this year than ever before in the history of human kind. The same applies to oil and gas.

“Even the most adren proponent of net zero has to accept the world will still be using oil and gas up until 2050 and beyond.

“And yet we’ve decided to sacrifice this industry as a consensus around Net Zero has emerged.”

Reform hints at Labour defector after Tory joins Nigel Farage at Aberdeen press conference

Nigel Farage has hinted at a Labour defector joining Reform UK following his appearance in Aberdeen earlier today.

The remark comes after Duncan Massey, who serves as a local councillor in the Granite City, took Reform's overall count north of the border to 11.

“There have been several Conservative councillors that have come to us, and there’ll be a Labour councillor coming to us this afternoon when we get to Hamilton,” Farage said on Monday morning.

“Duncan Massey has been not just a city councillor here in Aberdeen over the course of the last few years, but is somebody who has spent 20 years working in the oil and gas industry, and it’s my happy duty to welcome Duncan as a Reform councillor here in the city of Aberdeen today.”

'It's the next Brexit!' Nigel Farage makes pitch on net zero after taking aim at oil and gas row

The debate around net zero is "almost the next Brexit", Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has declared.

Speaking in Aberdeen, the Reform UK leader said: “You have Westminster, you have Edinburgh, you have Cardiff, all wedded to one particular point of view.

"Us, as the minority voice inside those institutions, but increasingly the majority voice out in the rest of the country.

“Believe me, the scales are falling from the eyes of the public when it comes to Net Zero.

"They realise we are putting upon ourselves a massive cost, let alone the opportunity cost of what we’re missing... When we closed down refineries.. and steelworks... all we’re doing is exporting the emissions of CO2 with the goods then being shipped back to us. The public are waking up to this”.

Nigel Farage declares victory in Hamilton by-election as 'biggest earthquake' in Scottish politics

Nigel Farage has claimed if Reform UK wins this week's Hamilton by-election it will mark the "biggest earthquake" in Scottish political history.

The Reform leader said: “Are we confident we’re coming third? Yes.

“Are we confident we’re coming? I don’t know but if we do it will be a very nice surprise.

“Do I realistically think we can win? If we do, it would be the biggest earthquake that Scottish politics has ever seen.”

RECAP: Nigel Farage unleashes 'Doge' unit on first council as Reform vows to save taxpayers' cash

Nigel Farage will today launch a new “Doge” unit at Reform’s first local council in a bid to clampdown on waste and inefficiency.

Reform UK’s “Doge” unit, which is comprised of software engineers, data analysts and forensic auditors, will visit each of the 10 councils Reform controls.

The unit will start in Kent today to look into ways to claw back taxpayers’ cash.

The group, appointed by Reform UK chairman Zia Yusuf, is expected be led by a top tech tycoon.

Reform has not yet named him, although the populist party says he has a specialism in data analytics and has also been a turnaround chief executive.

Yusuf said: “For too long, British taxpayers have watched their money vanish into a black hole.

“Their taxes keep going up, their bin collections keep getting less frequent, potholes remain unfixed, their local services keep getting cut.

“Reform won a historic victory on a mandate to change this. As promised, we have created a UK Doge to identify and cut wasteful spending of taxpayer money.

“Our team will use cutting edge technology and deliver real value for voters.”

WATCH NOW: Keir Starmer pledges to 'mobilise Britain' as he announces 'new era' for UK defence

'Yes, I can!' PM says he's '100% confident' about delivering on defence funding commitment

Sir Keir Starmer has said he is "100 per cent" confident that he will definitely deliver on his defence spending commitment.

Fielding questions from journalists, the Prime Minister said: “Yes, I can and I’ll tell you for why because when we set the terms of reference for this review we set it on the premise that we would be spending 2.5 per cent of GDP on our defence.

“Obviously since then what we have done is put the date on that, 2027/28, the highest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War... but also set out that ambition to hit three per cent in the next parliament.

“I am 100 per cent confident that this can be delivered because that was baked in form the very start of the review.”

PM vows to make Armed Forces 10 times more lethal by 2035

Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to make Britain's Armed Forces 10 times more lethal by 2035.

Speaking in Govan, the Prime Minister said: “Drones, destroyers, AI, aircraft. Each different branch of our armed services fully integrated to create an army which is 10 times more lethal by 2035.”

'War-fighting readiness!' Keir Starmer calls on 'every citizen' to play part in defending Britain

Sir Keir Starmer has called on "every citizen" to play their part in defending Britain in a major security speech in Glasgow.

The Prime Minister said: "Every part of society, every citizen of this country has a role to play because we have to recognise that things have changed."

Starmer also described the threat facing the UK as "more serious, more immediate, and more unpredictable than at any time since the Cold War".

14 new polls just proved Reform is winning over EVERY type of Briton - here's how

"It's the start of summer," Luke Tryl, the director of polling firm More In Common hailed on Sunday morning.

As June begins, his pollsters have released 14 unusual new graphs which rank Britons' favourite summer activities alongside their voting intentions.

From pub gardens to Pride parades, the data appears to show one thing - and it has raised the spirits of an already-surging Reform UK.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

'End the madness!' Keir Starmer urged to suspend EU fishing 'surrender' until France stops Channel crossing migrants

Sir Keir Starmer has been hit with mounting pressure to suspend Britain's fishing agreement with the European Union until France effectively halts migrant Channel crossings.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp vowed to confront Labour in the Commons later today, just weeks after Brexiteers fumed at the Prime Minister's "sell-out" reset.

France has committed to altering its laws to enable police officers to intercept boats in shallow waters.

Previously, French authorities refused such interventions and instead escorted migrants to the middle of the Channel, where they were subsequently rescued by Border Force and RNLI vessels.

A record 1,194 migrants successfully crossed the Channel on Saturday, while French officers were observed standing on beaches taking photographs as the boats departed.

This brought the total arrivals for the year to 14,811, representing the highest figure ever recorded in the first five months of any year and marking a 42 per cent increase compared to the same period last year.

France has intercepted merely 38 per cent of migrants this year, representing a decline from 45 per cent last year, 46.9 per cent in 2023, and 42.4 per cent in 2022.

Criticising France's performance on migrant interceptions, Philp said: "The French are completely failing to stop these illegal immigrants, despite receiving hundreds of millions of pounds from the UK taxpayer to do so. They are also failing to intercept any boats at sea and return them as the Belgians do."

READ THE FULL STORY

Keir Starmer prepares to deliver major defence speech today

The Prime Minister is expected to say: "From the supply lines to the front lines, this Government is foursquare behind the men and women upholding our nation’s freedom and security.

"National security is the foundation of my Plan for Change, and this plan will ensure Britain is secure at home and strong abroad, while delivering a defence dividend of well-paid jobs up and down the country.

"This Strategic Defence Review will ensure the UK rises to the challenge and our Armed Forces have the equipment they need that keeps us safe at home while driving greater opportunity for our engineers, shipbuilders and technicians of the future."

WATCH NOW: Armed Forces Minister Luke Pollard joins GB News to discuss the spending review

Keir Starmer commits to 3% defence spending but won't say when

Sir Keir Starmer has stopped short of saying when his Government will reach three per cent spending on defence.

Speaking to the BBC this morning, the Prime Minister said: "What I said at the election in 2024 is that we would get to 2.5 per cent.

"And I was pressed time and again 'what precise date', and I said 'as soon as I can be absolutely clear with a firm date, a firm commitment that we will keep to', because I had seen the previous Government make commitments about this percent or that percent with no plan behind it. I'm not going down that road.

"Therefore, what you can take from this is – yes – that three per cent, but I am not, as the Prime Minister of a Labour Government, going to make a commitment as to the precise date, until I can be sure precisely where the money is coming from, how we can make good on that commitment.

“Because I don't believe in performative fantasy politics, and certainly not on defence and security.”

WATCH NOW: Shadow Defence Secretary James Cartlidge warns Labour's 'backtracking' on defence spending

EXCLUSIVE: Nigel Farage leaves Labour rattled as Reform's turquoise tartan offensive faces crunch SNP test

Nigel Farage has been laying the groundwork for a turquoise tartan offensive in next year’s Scottish Parliament Election.

As the dust finally settles in England after a set of totemic Local Elections for Reform UK, the populist party’s 10,000 members north of the border have been focusing time and resources into a set of towns in the Central Belt.

Voters in Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse will go to the polls on June 5 following the death of SNP veteran Christina McKelvie after her battle with breast cancer.

Hamilton’s Holyrood seat voted SNP in all three contests held since its inception in 2011 - with Ukip receiving just 673 votes in 2016 and Reform UK’s support dropping to just 58 ballots in 2021.

And the towns have stuck to returning either SNP or Labour MPs to Westminster for the best part of a century.

South Lanarkshire is not traditionally considered fertile ground for Farage’s brand of Eurosceptic politics.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

'He doesn't care!' John Swinney ramps up attacks on Nigel Farage ahead of Hamilton by-election

Scottish First Minister has claimed Nigel Farage "doesn't care about Scotland" ahead of the Reform UK leader's visit to Aberdeen.

As campaigning enters its final days before Thursday's by-election, Swinney warned of the potential threat from Reform, saying: “Things remain tough for too many families who feel let down by Labour – who have given up in this campaign – and the deeply concerning rise in support for Farage.

“Be in no doubt, Nigel Farage doesn’t care about Scotland. He poses a threat to our values and must be stopped, and only the SNP can do that.

“In this by-election, the SNP is the only party investing in Scotland’s future, delivering for families and confronting Farage. On Thursday, vote SNP to stop Farage.”

Keir Starmer 'backtracks' on 3% defence target as plans to send 'message to Moscow' thrown into disarray

Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of "backtracking" on his three per cent defence target as his plan to send a message to Moscow is thrown into disarray ahead of today's strategic defence review.

Defence Secretary John Healey appeared to subtly U-turn on his pledge to boost defence spending to three per cent of GDP following a set of interviews over the weekend.

Last week, Healey said he had "no doubt" that the Government would meet the target by 2034, but when asked to repeat the pledge on Sunday, declined to do so, saying it was only an "ambition".

The confusion comes ahead of the Spending Review later this month, which has seen Government departments facing savage cuts jostling for funding from Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

Britain must move to 'war-fighting' readiness to deter Vladimir Putin, strategic defence review says

Britain needs to move towards "war-fighting" readiness to deter Russian aggression, a strategic defence review will conclude.

The 130-page document recommends increases in stockpiles of arms and support equipment, some of which may only last days in a crisis.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will launch the review on Monday, saying the exercise "will ensure the UK rises to the challenge and our armed forces have the equipment they need" in what ministers describe as an increasingly unstable world.

The three-strong review team, led by Lord Robertson, a former Nato secretary-general, has made 62 recommendations in response to what they conclude is "a new era of threat" from aggressive states and emerging technologies.

Speaking at the launch of the review on Monday, the Prime Minister will say: “From the supply lines to the front lines, this Government is foursquare behind the men and women upholding our nation’s freedom and security.

“National security is the foundation of my Plan for Change, and this plan will ensure Britain is secure at home and strong abroad, while delivering a defence dividend of well-paid jobs up and down the country.

“This Strategic Defence Review will ensure the UK rises to the challenge and our Armed Forces have the equipment they need that keeps us safe at home while driving greater opportunity for our engineers, shipbuilders and technicians of the future.”

Pressure ramps up on Keir Starmer to sack Attorney General after fresh 'two-tier' justice claims spark fury

Pressure is mounting on Sir Keir Starmer to sack Attorney General Lord Hermer.

Claims have emerged that he declined to review "unduly lenient" sentences given to a rapist, a paedophile and a terrorist fundraiser - despite signing off on the prosecution of Lucy Connolly.

The three criminals all received softer sentences than Connolly, who was imprisoned for 31 months for a tweet about last year's Southport attacks.

The Attorney General's office is said to have opted not to refer the decisions to the Court of Appeal for review.

Lord Hermer's office decided not to use the power to review the sentences despite each receiving less jail time than Connolly.

The findings, first reported by The Telegraph, have raised fresh questions about Lord Hermer's judgement.

READ IN FULL

READ IN FULL: Reform's council leader informs Kent County Council about 'Doge' unit

Reform's Kent County Council leader Linden Kemkaran has written to the local authority's chief executive Amanda Beer to announce her intention to undertake a review of the council’s “financial management, procurement activity, and associated governance arrangements”.

“This review is part of Reform’s commitment to transparency, accountability, the prudent management of public funds and the highest standards in public life,” Kemkaran's letter stated.

“Conducting this work was a core part of Reform’s local manifesto. We believe it is in the public interest to ensure that the council’s financial and procurement systems are robust, lawful, and value-driven.

“To that end, Kent council has appointed the Doge team, a unit of software engineers, data analysts and forensic auditors to conduct this review on our behalf.”

How much have Reform-run councils been spending?

• Kent County Council - £2.55billion
• Lancashire County Council - £1.95billion
• Derbyshire County Council - £1.61billion
• Lincolnshire County Council - £1.43billion
• Staffordshire County Council - £1.26billion
• Durham County Council - £1.08billion
• West Northamptonshire Council - £811.4million
• North Northamptonshire Council - £784.6million
• City of Doncaster Council - £651.2million