Shabana Mahmood Says Labours Small Boats Crackdown Is Bearing Fruit

Labour’s attempts to stop asylum seekers crossing the English Channel in small boats are “bearing fruit”, according to Shabana Mahmood.

The home secretary made the surprising claim as new data revealed the number of crossings this summer was the lowest in seven years.

Her comments came less than a week after nearly 500 migrants arrived in Dover in a single day.

A total of 102 small boats brought asylum seekers over the Channel between June and August this year, a lower number than any year since 2019, when 57 vessels made the journey.

Some 7,371 migrants made the perilous journey this summer, which is lower than any year since 2020, when 3,307 crossed from France.

Home Office figures released last week also showed that the number of small boat crossings is down 23% compared to last year.

Mahmood said: “This government is committed to restoring order at our border.

“This work is beginning to bear fruit, with June, July and August recording the lowest number of small boat crossings in seven years. But we know there is more to do.

“We will be relentless in targeting the criminal gangs behind these crossings, and we will continue to remove the incentives that draw people here on unsafe and illegal routes.”

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp rejected Mahmood’s claims, and insisted that bad weather was the cause rather than government action.

He said: “Labour’s returns deal with France has been exposed as total sham. I saw with my own eyes the reality on French beaches this summer, as gendarmes stood idly by while migrants boarded dinghies bound for England.

“The home secretary should not be taking credit for rough seas in the Channel.

“Every day the waves are low, hundreds of illegal immigrants flood in. Praying for choppy seas is not a border security strategy.”

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.