More than 100,000 migrants have crossed the English Channel illegally by boat since 2018 | TV5MONDE

More than 100,000 migrants have crossed the English Channel illegally in small boats to reach the UK since 2018.

On Thursday 10 August, 755 migrants attempted the perilous crossing to the English coast. A daily record from earlier this year, it brings the total number of migrants who have crossed the Channel to 100,715 since 2018, when the United Kingdom began counting these crossings, mainly from France.

Because the port of Calais and the Eurotunnel terminal are locked, making it very difficult or impossible for migrants to travel by truck, smugglers have actually chosen the sea route.

Saved from water

The English Channel, one of the world’s busiest straits, has been the scene of fatal shipwrecks of small boats, in which migrants are piling up at high prices for smugglers. Twenty-seven people died in November 2021.

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Brexit promises notwithstanding “Take back control” Borders, the number of migrants arriving on British soil in small boats reached a record level in 2022, with 45,000 people entering the border. Since the start of the year, fewer than 16,000 have reached British shores, marking a downward trend.

The conservative government, which has adopted a rhetoric seen as too harsh on immigrants, has in recent days multiplied announcements aimed at combating the phenomenon. Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak promised “Stop the Boats”Opinion polls predict a landslide victory for the Labor opposition in next year’s expected general elections.

He also announced that a committee has been set up to deal with it “Lawyers Helping Immigrants Use the Immigration System” It strengthened its financial support to the British and France, helping to monitor the coasts.

The measures to prevent crossing attempts did not stop there. A new law that came into force in July, condemned by even the UN, now bans migrants who have arrived illegally on British soil from seeking asylum in the UK. It provides for their deportation to their country of origin or to third countries such as Rwanda, although this plan has been blocked by justice.

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Disappointment for conservatives

100,000 migrants have tried to cross as the British Conservative government faces a new setback in its crackdown on illegal immigration. Government of Rishi Sunak He also wanted to use a boat at sea to house migrants awaiting a decision, with the aim of reducing accommodation costs for asylum seekers.

But the presence of Legionella in the water supply system, a bacteria that can cause legionellosis, a respiratory infection, prompted the 39 residents on board to leave the boat on Friday. “Forewarned”Home Ministry said.

However, a Home Office spokesman confirmed that no one on board had shown symptoms “health” and the “well-being” of residents.Top priorities“.

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Despite much criticism from human rights groups, which staunchly opposed the implementation of the device, the barge, for a long time, was named “Bp Stockholm”500 asylum seekers to be accommodated.