Criminal gangs who advertise small boat crossings across the English Channel or fake passports online could spend up to five years behind bars under new legislation.
Ministers are looking to create a new offence under the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill already going through Parliament in an attempt to crackdown on criminal gangs promoting Channel crossings on the Internet, The Mirror reports.
Under the proposed law, offenders could receive a prison sentence of up to five years and a hefty fine.
Assisting illegal migration is already a crime, but officials hope the changes will give more powers to police to disrupt criminal gangs.
Around 80 percent of migrants arriving to the UK by small boats say they used social media to find someone associated with a criminal gang who could smuggle them into the country.
