Over 8,000 migrants have crossed the Channel since Labour came to power two months ago.
Another 317 crossed yesterday, despite a tragedy off the north coast of France leading to a dozen deaths, understood to be Eritreans.
And those souls lost at sea have done nothing to prevent more attempted crossings today, with GB News revealing this morning that two boats entered UK waters carrying up to 16 and 50 migrants respectively.
Today we saw more of the shocking scenes that have led to small boat tragedies in the waters, with an overladen craft being swamped by additional migrants rushing into the water to hop onto the people-smuggling vessel.
The French political reaction is that the entire crisis is Britain's fault, says Charlie Peters
PA
Before Tuesday's incident, 30 people had already died crossing the Channel in 2024 - the highest figure for any year since 2021, when 45 deaths were recorded, according to the UN's International Organisation for Migration.
The steady drumbeat of fatalities will continue if the troubling scenes we saw on the north coast of France continue.
The French authorities have extensive manpower, buggies, specialist night-vision equipment, and UAVs that can patrol the coastline and uncover those seeking to avoid detection in the dunes.
The British taxpayer is partly funding this Gendarmerie operation, but the billion-dollar people-smuggling industry always finds a way to adapt and overcome.
It’s one thing to disrupt them, but to totally deny the gangs without removing the reward of Britain is nigh on impossible.
GB News sources said this morning that some 3,000 migrants are waiting near the coastline, breaking from the standard procedure of preparing their crossings further inland.
And the people-smuggling organised criminal gangs are ready to meet their demand, launching sites further down the coastline and usually made-to-order boats that can disrupt French detection attempts.
Increasingly, they are preparing their operations in canals, suddenly appearing at the sea, avoiding the French attempts to capture boats hidden in the dunes.
But increasingly, the French political reaction is that this entire crisis is Britain’s fault.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin last night referred to Britain’s loosely regulated job market, which he said was drawing in predominantly young men from Eritrea, Sudan, Iran, Iraq, and other less-wealthy corners of the globe.
In Britain, says Gerald, migrants find a safe haven where they can work, no matter their right to work.
He reiterated his call for a new migrant treaty between Britain and the EU, echoing calls by activists for ‘safe and legal routes’ into the UK.
In a way, there is much truth to Mr Darmanin’s statements.
Britain is relatively light touch on enforcement of illegal migration.
Just on a simple matter of state capacity, the detention estate has dropped from 4,000 beds to around 2,500 in the last 10 years, which is certainly a time when those facilities would have been helpful.
And there is plenty of ‘black market’ gig economy work available for asylum seekers, who are technically barred from accessing it.
But Tony Smith, the former director general of the UK Border Force, told me this morning that it was "a bit rich" for the French to lay blame on Britain when so many solvable failures are firmly on their doorstep.
Over 8,000 migrants have crossed the Channel since Labour came to power two months ago
PA
LATEST FROM MEMBERSHIP:
"These are organised crime gangs operating under their noses in Calais - and the migrants are residing in France illegally, yet no enforcement action is being taken.
"Any drownings in their waters are absolutely their responsibility, not ours. Yes of course we should look at the underlying pull factors — but the fact is that the migrants are safe in France and can claim protection there if they need it.
"They do have a choice; but by opting to take to the boats they are not only fuelling the smugglers’ business model but also risking their lives, as well as the lives of their children.
"The answer is that anyone found in an unsafe boat on the English Channel should be rescued and taken straight back to France. It’s the French government that has refused to agree to this, not us," he said.
Strong words, clearly expressed. I’d love to see Mr Darmanin face a question or two from Tony at his next press conference.
And Tony’s expertise speaks to the heart of this crisis: people will continue to take the risk to cross as long as the ‘pull factors’ exist, no deterrent prevents them, and no one is threatening to return them.
Even if Britain fixed its ‘Deliveroo visa’ problem, there would still be thousands attempting the journey every year.
