Britain faces surge as 700 migrants cross the channel in small boats

• French authorities reported two deaths during the crossing.
• The latest figures follow a period of anti-migrant unrest in the UK.
• Starmer and France’s President Emmanuel Macron have pledged to enhance “cooperation.” 

On Sunday, over 700 migrants crossed the Channel to Britain in small boats, marking the highest number in a single day since Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged to address people-smuggling. French authorities reported that two migrants died during the crossing, raising the total number of fatalities on this perilous journey to 25 since the start of the year.

According to provisional figures released by the interior ministry on Monday, approximately 703 people arrived on Sunday across 11 boats. Addressing small boat arrivals was a major issue in Britain’s general election in July.

Within days of taking power, Starmer scrapped the controversial scheme to deport migrants to Rwanda, a flagship policy of the previous Conservative government. Instead, Starmer has pledged to dismantle the people-smuggling gangs that organize the crossings and charge each migrant thousands of euros.

The latest figures follow a period of anti-migrant unrest in the UK, triggered by a knife attack on July 29 that killed three children and was falsely linked to a Muslim immigrant on social media. On Saturday, thousands of anti-racism demonstrators rallied across Britain in response to riots targeting mosques and hotels associated with immigration.

Starmer and France’s President Emmanuel Macron have pledged to enhance “cooperation” in managing the surge in undocumented migrant numbers. The latest crossings bring the total for 2024 to 18,342, a 13 percent increase compared to the same time last year.

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