More than 200 migrants crossed the Channel in three boats on Monday – The Irish News

More than 200 people crossed the Channel in three boats on Monday, according to figures from the British Home Office.

On August 19, 206 migrants crossed the sea in three boats. On average, there were almost 69 people per boat.

According to the latest figures, the provisional total for the year so far stands at 19,294.

This is a 10% increase from last year’s figure of 17,620.

But the latest figure is 10% lower than in 2022, when 21,344 border crossings were recorded in the same period.

The highest number of crossings in a single day since the Labour government came to power was on 11 August, when 703 people were recorded arriving in the UK in 11 boats. This equates to an average of 64 people per boat.

A Home Office spokesman said: “We all want to see an end to dangerous small boat crossings, which undermine border security and endanger lives.

“The new Government is taking steps to improve our border security by establishing a new Border Security Command that will bring together our intelligence and law enforcement agencies, equipped with new counter-terrorism powers and hundreds of staff based in the UK and abroad to help defeat criminal smuggling gangs that are making millions in profits.”

The Ministry of the Interior is in the process of recruiting a border control commander who will work with European partners to tackle people-smuggling gangs behind the border crossings.