FRENCH cops paraded around in a buggy paid for by the UK — as dinghy migrants set sail.
On yet another shambolic day, the number of arrivals here hit a record 20,000 since the start of 2025.
AFPFrench cops parading around in buggies paid for by the UK as small boat migrants set sail[/caption]
LNPPolice patrol Gravelines beach near Dunkirk[/caption]
LNPA plane patrols the area over Gravelines[/caption]
Critics said £500million of taxpayer cash given to France had only turned its beaches into “the world’s most expensive sieve”.
Patrols with jeeps, quad bikes and drones were pictured on the sand yesterday as smugglers prepared to launch more dinghies.
On Monday alone, 879 reached British shores, the third biggest daily total in 2025.
We saw patrols at Gravelines near Dunkirk, and Équihen, west of Calais.
The crisis is now 48 per cent worse than this time last year and 75 per cent higher than in 2023, according to Home Office figures.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said: “Record numbers of young undocumented males have crossed this year thanks to French beaches being the world’s most expensive sieve — this is a disaster for the country.
“They are costing us money, making us less safe, and they bring a terrorist threat.
“This will only get worse under the weakest Prime Minister I have ever seen.”
PM Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron are due to meet in London next week for a State visit and a summit focused on tackling the crossings.
The UK first signed a deal with France under the last Tory government, with nearly £500million committed to extra patrols, surveillance drones, vehicles and riot vans.
Sir Keir has extended the commitment.
The leaders are also preparing to unveil a new “one in, one out” migrant returns deal — sending some Channel arrivals to France in exchange for Britain accepting migrants with family reunion rights.
But the Tories have branded the plan a “fantasy” and demanded their Rwanda scheme be reinstated.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: “One year into Labour’s government and the boats haven’t stopped, they’ve multiplied.
“It’s become a free-for-all.
“We need a removals deterrent so every single illegal immigrant who arrives is removed outside Europe.
“The crossings will then rapidly stop.”
Sir Keir has faced pressure to deliver on his promise to “smash the gangs” fuelling the crisis.
AFPA cop brandishes a tear-gas spray as he tries to prevent migrants from boarding a boat at Équihen[/caption]
AFPAnother cop takes a snap at Équihen, west of Calais[/caption]
But Downing Street insisted it will take time to solve it, warning “it’s not simple” to dismantle international smuggling networks.
The PM’s spokesman said the figures were “clearly unacceptable”, adding: “But let’s be clear, gangs have been allowed to embed industrial-scale smuggling enterprises across Europe, whilst our own asylum system collapsed through failed policies like Rwanda.
They are costing us money, making us less safe, and they bring a terrorist threat. This will only get worse under the weakest Prime Minister I have ever seen
Nigel Farage
“But we are taking action.”
The spokesman pointed to arrests of gang leaders, thousands of boat seizures, and closer ties with France.
The Ministry of Justice yesterday confirmed legal aid fees for immigration and asylum cases will rise by 30 per cent, marking the first increase in almost three decades.
The taxpayer bill is expected to jump by up to £20million a year, with lawyers receiving higher fees to take on cases.
Justice Minister Sarah Sackman defended the move.
AFPFire officers on a jet ski as illegals try to board boat[/caption]
AFPThe number of migrant arrivals hit a record 20,000 since the start of 2025[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
