An aerial photograph shows inflatable dinghies and outboard engines thought to have been used by migrants to cross the English Channel from France, stored in a Port Authority yard in Dover, United Kingdom, on August 17, 2025. BEN STANSALL / AFP
Nearly 37,000 migrants arrived in the UK by small boats this year, more than the total for the whole of 2024, interior ministry figures showed on Thursday, October 23. It is a massive headache for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who had promised to "smash the gangs" of people smugglers charging migrants huge sums for the dangerous journey across the Channel.
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As migrant drownings continue in the Channel, local solidarity persists
A total of 36,954 migrants crossed over from northern France to England's southern coast so far this year, compared with 36,816 for all of last year, the figures showed. The annual record for small boat arrivals was set in 2022, when the number for the full year reached 45,774.
