Migrant Channel crossings exceed 34,000 for 2024 after 609 reach UK shores following eight-day hiatus
WATCH NOW: Reform UK demanding criminal migrant figures sparks FURY
GB NEWS
A staggering 609 migrants crossed the English Channel in nine boats on Thursday, marking the highest daily total for December since records began in 2018.
The unprecedented December surge also represents the largest single-day crossing since mid-October, when 647 people made the perilous journey.
Home Office figures confirmed the dramatic increase in arrivals at Dover, where Border Force vessels brought groups of migrants wearing life jackets ashore.
Downing Street acknowledged the concerning figures, with a No10 spokesman stating: "Of course these numbers need to be reduced."
A stock image of a group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dungeness, KentPAThe latest crossings have pushed the provisional total for 2023 to 34,582 migrants, marking a significant 19 per cent increase compared to the same period last year.
Despite the surge, current figures remain notably below the record-breaking year of 2022, when 44,821 people made the crossing - representing a 23 per cent decrease from that peak.
A No10 spokesman emphasised the Government's commitment to reform, stating: "This is the chaos that this Government inherited."
"We put in place a serious credible plan to bring order to the asylum system by smashing smuggling gangs through our new Border Security Command," the spokesman added.
A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent,PAGB News can reveal around 150 have arrived in Britain so far on Friday.
Migrants braved winter conditions to make the crossing for the first time in eight days, marking only the third day of Channel activity this month.
The crossings resumed amid calmer weather in the wake of recent storms, with an average of 68 people per vessel.
Young men were observed being transported from Dover's port in coaches on Friday as further crossings continued.
The surge in arrivals comes as the Home Office announced a suspension of asylum application decisions for Syrians, following the collapse of the Assad regime.
A group of people thought to be migrants are escorted up the beach in Dungeness, KentPAHome Secretary Yvette Cooper informed MPs that this policy remains under constant review as officials monitor the evolving situation.
Germany has pledged to strengthen its laws against people smugglers enabling Channel crossings, as part of a new bilateral agreement with Britain.
The enhanced legislation aims to give German prosecutors additional tools to combat the supply and storage of dangerous boats used in crossings.
The commitment follows Tuesday's Calais Group meeting in London, where ministers and police from five nations gathered to address immigration crime.
Representatives from the UK, Germany, France, Belgium and the Netherlands agreed to a coordinated plan targeting people smuggling gangs throughout 2025.
The international cooperation marks a significant step in British efforts to tackle illegal Channel crossings through enhanced European partnerships.
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