‘66 made it to Britain on Christmas Day alone’

SIXTY-SIX migrants crossed the Channel on Christmas Day alone – 26 more than was previously believed, it was claimed last night.

Iranians who were left behind in Calais refugee camps said they received calls and messages confirming the figure from relatives and friends who reached Britain.

Mohsen Farzizad, 33, said: ‘From these messages we worked out that 66 went in all. There were six or seven boats that night. We know 43 arrived first in one group, and then the other boats arrived with 23.’

The claim could not be verified but a leading Calais charity – L’Auberge des Migrants – said it had received similar information.

Questions were raised yesterday about whether the French authorities are trying to stop the Channel crossings.

Lucy Moreton, of the Immigration Services Union, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme it is ‘very difficult to know’ how much the French are doing. She added: ‘We are being told that those touting for these crossings are absolutely open about it.

‘If it’s that obvious, presumably it is obvious to the French authorities too.’ Fisherman Matt Coker, who rescued four migrants off Dover in September, said: ‘They [the French] do seem a bit relaxed. We are actively looking on the English side but I would think they should be doing the same thing.’

Police raid the Calais camps every other day and generally only in daylight hours. It means that for the rest of the time, especially at night, the traffickers are free to come and go as they please.

Currently, there are more than 1,000 migrants living in Calais and Dunkirk.