London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Oct 28, 2025

Priti Patel failing over small boat Channel crossings, Labour says

Priti Patel failing over small boat Channel crossings, Labour says

Priti Patel's "incompetence" in dealing with small boats crossing the Channel is "dangerous", Labour has said.

More than 24,700 people have made the crossing from France to the UK by boat so far this year to seek asylum or to immigrate - almost three times the total of 8,500 in 2020.

Shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds accused the government of "comprehensive failure" on the issue.

But ex-Home Secretary Sajid Javid said his successor was doing all she could.

He also questioned why people were making the dangerous journey, telling the BBC's Andrew Marr programme: "You have to ask the question, if you are a genuine asylum seeker, why have you not claimed asylum already if you're in a safe country [like France]?"

The government has launched a review into how to prevent boats from crossing the 21-mile stretch of water from Calais, with the now-Health Secretary Mr Javid saying it wanted to "bust the business model" of people smugglers, who were "ultimately responsible" for the problem.

But Tory MPs are warning the issue is costing the Conservative Party in the polls.

Speaking to the BBC, South Thanet MP Craig Mackinlay said it had become a key issue on the doorstep and a solution was needed "now".

A government source told the BBC the home secretary was the only one who had come up with a credible plan.

But they acknowledged there was no "silver bullet" to solve the issue.


Record numbers of people have made the crossing this year, with more than 1,000 making the journey in a single day earlier this month.

Home Secretary Ms Patel has promised tougher action, but the numbers have continued to rise.

And it is understood Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants more to be done.

The UK signed a deal with France in July, pledging €62.7m (£54m) during 2021-22 to help the country increase police patrols along its coastline, boost aerial surveillance and increase security infrastructure at ports.

But Labour's Mr Thomas-Symonds accused his government counterpart of being "more interested in a diplomatic spat [with France] than she is in a workable deal".


Ministers have often talked tough on small boats crossing the Channel - but record numbers are making the dangerous journey and potentially risking their lives.

Some Tory MPs believe the government is increasingly looking weak by not managing to stop illegal crossings.

They report significant concern among constituents and believe that is being reflected in opinion polls.

For a party that promised to take back control after Brexit, they argue this shows the opposite.

Labour wants closer cooperation with France - accusing ministers of indulging in "spats".

But it's not clear that would solve the issue either.

Ministers argue the Nationality and Borders Bill going through the Commons at the moment will give them more powers, such as to process asylum cases in another country.

The argument is this would deter those people who are not genuine asylum seekers.

But it will be some time before ministers get those powers - and there are growing calls for a more immediate answer.

The shadow home secretary said his party would reintroduce the Dubs scheme - intended to offer safe passage to unaccompanied child asylum seekers - as well as increasing patrols further away from the coast and reinstating overseas aid funding.

He also said a Labour government would find a replacement for the Dublin agreement, which allows EU countries to transfer asylum seekers back to the first member state they were proven to have entered - an agreement the UK left after Brexit.

Between January 2019 and October 2020, 231 migrants who crossed the Channel were returned to mainland Europe using the Dublin agreement.

But Immigration Minister Tom Pursglove told MPs last week that only five had been returned to mainland Europe so far in 2021.

Mr Thomas-Symonds told Andrew Marr: "There are thousands of lives being risked in the English Channel on a day-to-day basis and the home secretary's incompetence on this matter is dangerous."

But Mr Javid said leaving the Dublin agreement had made little difference to the UK's ability to send asylum seekers back to other countries.

"Hardly any country in Europe enforced the Dublin agreement," the health secretary said.

"I can tell you that because I was home secretary at the time trying to enforce it and almost every country in Europe ignored it."

The minister said new agreements were needed with the EU, but he said Ms Patel had already signed some with countries like India.

He added: "I would say that the pandemic has made returning people across the world, across asylum systems, much harder, and we do have to take that into account as well."

Mr Javid also said the home secretary "is doing everything that she can and she hasn't taken anything off the table" to tackle the issue.


Nick Thomas-Symonds: "The home secretary's incompetence is dangerous"

Sajid Javid: ''The pandemic has made returning people across the world, across asylum systems, much harder''


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
×