Britain’s smallest new arrival... boy, 6, is rescued with 33 migrants in packed boat
WRAPPED in a blanket, a young boy is ushered towards safety after making it across the Channel yesterday with more than 30 other migrants.
The group, which also included women, made the crossing from France packed in a small rigid inflatable boat.
They managed to enter British waters despite the presence of two extra patrol boats. Two RNLI boats and three Border Force vessels detained them near the port of Dover in Kent.
The migrants were transferred on to HMC Vigilant and brought ashore. They were then given blankets before being taken away in Border Force vans at the harbour for questioning.
Unseasonably warm weather and relatively calm seas are thought to have encouraged the migrants to make the journey.
A witness said: ‘I saw a boy aged about six being taken off the boat along with at least two women. I thought this was a bit unusual as those who have crossed previously have tended to be groups of young men.’
It is not known where the migrants are from but because they were rescued in British waters, they will be dealt with by UK immigration officials.
Almost 400 migrants, mostly young Iranian men, are believed to have attempted the Channel crossing in the past 14 weeks. Home Secretary Sajid Javid declared the crossings a ‘major incident’ after Christmas.
But he was later forced to admit that the two extra Border Force patrol boats he promised on December 31 were not expected back from the Mediterranean until ‘early February’.
Dover MP Charlie Elphicke said: ‘This underlines yet again why we urgently need air surveillance day and night along the French coast – to catch the traffickers long before they reach Dover. If we fail to stop people attempting dangerous crossings in small craft, we risk a tragedy in the English Channel.
‘This incident also underlines yet again the shocking lengths ruthless people traffickers will go to in order to break people into Britain.’
Last night the Home Office said 34 migrants were rescued from a small boat in the Channel.
A spokesman said: ‘Since the Home Secretary declared a major incident in December we have tripled the number of cutters operating in the Channel.
‘ The number of individuals attempting to cross the Channel decreased from around 250 in December to around 90 in January, with roughly half of the January attempts being intercepted by partners in France before they could make it to British waters.’
Three men have been arrested on suspicion of immigration offences, the Home Office said.