POLL OF THE DAY: Is the UK Government doing enough to tackle migrant gangs in the Channel? - YOUR VERDICT

A Dauphin helicopter from the National Navy was deployed to the scene, recovering three unresponsive individuals from the water.

The casualties were immediately transported to the Tom Souville nautical base where emergency medical teams attempted first aid.

Medical teams from SMUR (emergency medical services) pronounced three individuals deceased.

In total, 48 people were involved in the rescue operation, including the three who lost their lives.

They are the first deaths in the Channel since October and take the total number of people who have died attempting the crossing this year to at least 53.

The incident follows four days of crossings that saw a total of 1,485 people make the journey – the busiest Christmas period since records began in 2018.

Figures published on Sunday showed 322 people crossed the Channel in six boats on Saturday, while more were seen arriving in Dover on Sunday.

Some 36,525 people have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel in small boats so far this year, up 24 per cent on 2023 but down 20 per cent on the record year of 2022.

The Christmas period has also seen the total number of people arriving in the UK in small boats since 2018 pass 150,000.

A whopping 99 per cent of GB News members who voted in the poll don't think the UK Government is doing enough to tackle migrant gangs in the Channel, while just one per cent think that it does.