Border Force deliver more migrants to Dover as ministers warn lords there will be no more concessions on Channel boats bill
- Pictures emerged today of dozens of suspected migrants being taken ashore
- 12 boats and 641 suspected migrants detected this week, not including today
- Robert Jenrick gave stern warning to House of Lords over Illegal Migration Bill
Border Force has rescued a boatload of suspected migrants and brought them to the Port of Dover.
Pictures emerged on Friday showing dozens of people wearing lifejackets while being brought ashore by the Border Force vessel BF Hurricane.
According to reports, it came after ‘a small boat incident’ in the Channel.
From the pictures, the majority appeared to be male and several were also wearing facemasks.
There are no official figures or even estimates of how many people were brought to Dover today, so far.
A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, today on Friday, July 14
The passengers were reportedly rescued by BF Hurricane following a ‘small boat incident’ in the Channel
So far, official figures of how many people were taken aboard are not available but so far this week, there has been 12 boats and 641 suspected migrants detected
But according to Migration Watch UK, from the start of this week, there have been 12 boats spotted and a total of 641 suspected migrants detected – but not including today’s rescue.
Chairperson of Migration Watch UK, Alp Mehmet, said: ‘We don’t know but it would hardly be surprising if more migrants had crossed the Channel.
‘Indeed, they will continue to arrive until convincing measures are in place to show that coming illegally will result in you being granted refuge.’
A Home Office spokesperson said: ‘The unacceptable number of people risking their lives by making these dangerous crossings is placing an unprecedented strain on our asylum system.
‘Our priority is to stop the boats, and our Small Boats Operational Command is working alongside our French partners and other agencies to disrupt the people smugglers.
‘The government has gone further by introducing legislation which will ensure that those people arriving in the UK illegally are detained and promptly removed to their country of origin or a safe third country.’
News of the recent crossing comes after it was reported that up to and including July 10, there has been a total of 13,000 migrants who have crossed the Channel by small boat.
Last year saw a record 45,755 people make the treacherous crossing – 60 per cent higher than 2021’s total of 28,526.
But officials have predicted that as many as 80,000 migrants could reach the UK by the end of this year.
Today, immigration minister Robert Jenrick gave a stern warning to the House of Lords over its Illegal Migration Bill.
It is believed that the Peers want to challenge the legislation before Parliament goes into Summer recess.
Officials have predicted that as many as 80,000 migrants could reach the UK by the end of this year
Last year saw a record 45,755 people make the treacherous crossing – 60 per cent higher than 2021’s total of 28,526
There has been a total of 13,000 migrants who have crossed the Channel by small boat, up to July 10
The Lords want further concessions on limits to the detention of children, modern slavery protections and the provision of safe and legal routes for refugees to the UK.
The proposals are a crucial part of Rishi Sunak’s vow to ‘stop the boats’.
Mr Jenrick told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that critics of the Bill had not put forward any ‘credible alternative’.
‘It’s incumbent on those who choose to criticise our approach to provide an alternative.
‘It’s not a serious or grown-up way to conduct a debate to say, ‘well we have concerns about Rwanda’, ‘we don’t like the compliant environment’ – ‘We don’t want this, we don’t want to’, but not to come up with an alternative.’
