PM on brink of unwanted small boats milestone - and far faster than his Tory predecessors

The fig of radical who person illegally crossed the Channel connected tiny boats nether the Labour authorities is connected the brink of passing 50,000.

Home Office figures amusement that up to and including Sunday, a full of 49,797 radical had arrived since 5 July 2024.

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Sky News witnessed much migrants being brought ashore astatine Dover connected Monday connected a time of exceptional weather, and the Conservatives assertion the 50,000 threshold has been hit.

Official statistic could corroborate the milestone aboriginal today.

It would mean Sir Keir Starmer - who won powerfulness promising to "smash the gangs" down the crossings - has seen 50,000 crossings connected his ticker successful 401 days.

Sky News chief governmental analogous Jon Craig said that's "much faster" than nether Rishi Sunak, who was successful bureau for 603 days erstwhile helium deed the unwanted tally.

It took immoderate 1,066 days nether Boris Johnson, though it's worthy remembering his tenure covered the pandemic.

Nearly 20,000 migrants crossed the Channel to the UK successful the archetypal six months of this year, a emergence of astir 50% connected the fig crossing successful 2024 and a caller grounds for the archetypal fractional of a year.

The authorities is hoping a caller "one successful 1 retired deal" with France that came into unit past week volition deter crossings, with immoderate migrants present facing the imaginable of being detained and returned.

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Badenoch: People don't consciousness safe

The numbers person further fuelled nationalist choler implicit the usage of hotels to location asylum seekers, with protests taking spot crossed the state this summer.

Conservative person Kemi Badenoch has suggested "camps" beryllium acceptable up instead, saying women and children successful her Essex constituency and elsewhere "don't consciousness safe".

Her enactment are besides proposing automatic deportation for immoderate amerciable migrants, and person regularly criticised the authorities for scrapping the Rwanda scheme.

Shadow location caput Chris Philp said "Labour tore up our deterrents earlier they were adjacent successful place".

A Number 10 spokesperson said crossings "reached all-time highs" nether the erstwhile Tory government.

"The gangs had six years to acceptable routes," they added, and Labour are determined to tackle the situation by "hunting down gangs" and "fixing the foundations of a breached asylum system".