Migrant crisis: 2024 small boat arrivals surpass 16,000 as authorities rescue 80 more from sinking vessel

Rescue services were alerted to the incident just after lunchtime on Saturday, seven miles off St Margaret's Bay, east of Dover.

The French border vessel Ridens had been escorting the packed small boat into UK waters when it began rapidly deflating.

Two Border force vessels were quickly on scene and lifeboats from Dover and Walmer were also dispatched.

Those onboard the migrant dinghy were safely transferred onto the Border Force catamaran Typhoon, and the other rescue vessels were stood down.

When Typhoon arrived at Dover harbour after 2pm, GB News Kent producer counted 80 migrants, as they were taken to the nearby Border Force processing centre.

An hour later, the Border Force vessel Volunteer arrived at Dover with almost 120 migrants, who are believed to have been taken off two small boats that made it to UK waters.

Earlier this morning, the Volunteer brought 58 small boat migrants to Dover, including some women and children.

And a third Border Force vessel, Hurricane was also involved in a frantic day of Channel activity on Saturday, when it brought 82 migrants to the Kent port.

Today's arrivals take the total number of migrants who have made the illegal crossing this year to almost 16,200.

That figure is 8 per cent higher than the numbers who crossed at the same point in 2023.

It also takes the total number of small boat migrants arriving since the new Labour Government came to power three weeks ago to more than 2,600.

On his first day in office, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer scrapped the previous Government's Rwanda deterrent scheme and branded it a "gimmick."

Instead, Labour has vowed to go after the people smugglers and "smash the gangs" as its solution to ending the Channel crisis.

A new Border Security Command is being established, with the Government promising to funnel millions of pounds of extra funding into the new body, and provide it with hundreds of extra officers.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "We all want to see an end to the dangerous small boat crossings, which are undermining border security and putting lives at risk.

"The new Government is taking steps to boost our border security, setting up a new Border Security Command which will bring together our intelligence and enforcement agencies, equipped with new counter-terror-style powers and hundreds of personnel stationed in the UK and overseas, to smash the criminal smuggling gangs making millions in profit."