Migrant crisis deepens in UK
Home Secretary cuts holiday short, rejects Navy patrols as numbers grow
Britain’s Home Secretary Sajid Javid is resisting calls for more patrol boats to be deployed to the Channel to tackle the migrant crisis despite yesterday declaring it a “major incident”.
The Home Secretary broke off from his holiday to “take control” of the situation as a further 12 migrants landed in Dover, bringing to 90 the number rescued since Christmas Day.
Despite pressure from Tory colleagues, French politicians and the military, Javid is reluctant to order additional boats to the Channel, for fear it could encour- age more migrants to attempt the crossing.
A Home Office source said: “We believe we have enough boats operationally to deal with it. The bigger issue is to prevent the migrants coming in the first place by targeting the people smugglers.”
It was unclear what action the Home Office planned to take beyond the current sea patrols and joint Anglo-French operations involving the National Crime Agency (NCA).
As he declared the crisis a “major incident”, Javid, who is seen as a potential successor to Theresa May, appointed a “Gold Commander” to oversee the situation and was briefed by officials from the Border Force, NCA and Immigration Enforcement.
He will discuss with his French counterpart, Interior Minister Christopher Castaner, how joint operations
could be extended and what more could be done to stop traffickers.
In response to calls for extra boats, in the Channel, Javid has commissioned the Border Force to decide “whether this is likely to encourage more people to try to make the crossing rather than act as a deterrence”.
Officials opposed to further deployment point to evidence that migrants are deliberately setting out from France with the aim of being rescued. Coastguard sources disclosed yesterday that some migrants were calling 999 once they were mid-Channel so they could be picked up and brought to Dover to claim asylum.
Tim Loughton, a senior member of the home affairs committee, said the “woefully inadequate” sea patrols needed to be stepped up.
“But ultimately what we need is a system where those picked up in the Channel are taken back to where they came from . . . to deter others.”
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