𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Andy Burnham’s Channel migrant nightmare has intensified after four people died trying to reach the UK.

The Home Office confirmed 752 people arrived on Wednesday – an average of 84 people per boat – as smugglers smashed the record daily total this year.

It reinforces fears that the criminal gangs have switched to bigger boats, with some networks now cramming more than 100 people onto some dinghies.

One man died after being in a boat for 16 hours, which had travelled a staggering 124 miles, according to reports in France.

About 100 people tried to climb onto the boat, leading to the death of one of the small number of people already on the boat.

Three women were found dead on a “taxi boat” in Dunkirk.

And the dinghy continued to the UK, with two Border Force vessels waiting to collect the asylum seekers once they reached British waters.

Another man died, and six were injured, including a small baby, during an attempted crossing overnight. He had been on the dinghy for 16 hours when 100 people tried to climb on between Hardelot and Dannes.

The boat had departed from Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer (north of Caen), in Seine-Maritime, at 7am, according to reports in France. This is one of the furthest distances ever recorded.

US president Donald Trump warned Mr Burnham that mass migration is “killing your country”, adding: “It’s an invasion and the UK is a prime suspect.”

It comes just days after the Prime Minister said the Government’s plan to curb Channel crossings was “working”, although he admitted there was “more to do”.

Mr Burnham stood by his comments during a visit to Cumbria on Thursday, maintaining that “progress is being made on all fronts” when pressed by reporters.

He said “significant progress” had been made in reducing the number of crossings and praised the Home Secretary’s efforts, but added that more work was needed to “get the grip on the issue” and “get those numbers right down”.

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said: “Successive governments failed to stop the boats because they were trying to fix the symptoms, not the cause.

“If people know they can stay and claim benefits, they’ll keep coming. If they know they’ll be removed, they won’t come. We must change the incentives.

“That’s why the Conservative Borders Plan leaves the ECHR, giving us the power to ban asylum claims from illegal entrants, and remove new arrivals within a week.

“That’s why we will make it harder for non-citizens to claim welfare and housing benefits.

“And that’s why we will restrict ILR and citizenship.

“This is common sense. And this how we will take back control of our borders for good.”

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: “Illegal Channel crossings are extremely dangerous and put lives at risk. Every one of these tragic deaths was preventable.

“The only way to save lives is to stop the crossings completely. And the only way we can stop the crossings is by having a proper deterrent.

“If people know they can stay in the UK, get put up in a hotel and claim benefits then they will keep risking these dangerous journeys.

“Instead, if they know they will be quickly removed then they will not cross in the first place. We must end the incentive to illegally enter the UK.”

The latest arrivals take the provisional total for the year so far to 14,128.

But concern is intensifying over the tactics being adopted by the Channel migrant smugglers.

National Crime Agency deputy director Dan Cannatella-Barcroft said: “Crime groups involved in Channel small boat crossings are using ever more dangerous and unseaworthy boats, callously overcrowding them for profit while increasing the risk to life.

“We know that many of these vessels are manufactured in Europe or Asia, where they are made specifically for the use of people smugglers.

“Boats and engines are transported across the European continent, ultimately to the French or Belgian coast. There is no other commercial use for these types of boats.

“We assess that our activity with European partners is having an impact on boat and engine supply, making it more difficult and costlier for OCGs [organised crime groups] to source equipment.

“We know the price of equipment has increased, and OCGs have changed the routes and methods they have used to transport equipment in response to law enforcement activity.”

The criminal gangs have spread further south in France, regularly launching from beaches in Dieppe. A crossing attempt has also been detected in Fecamp.

Warships are now regularly spotted patrolling a 70-mile stretch of water between Dieppe and Le Touquet.

On Wednesday, three warships were in that region – a level of presence usually reserved for Calais and Dunkirk.

New intelligence, seen by the Daily Express, states that the Home Office believes there is “evidence” that France is becoming a “less viable launch point”.

And frontline officials believe “we are in a vastly better place than 18 months ago”.

Border security commander Duncan Capps told Ms Mahmood this month: “We are in a vastly better place than 18 months ago.”

He added: “As of June 2026, the number of migrants reaching the UK by small boat is down by 41% (year-to-date compared to 2025).

“This number of small boat arrivals is the lowest at this point in the year since 2023.

“Record disruptions, arrests and seizures are ramping up pressure on OCGs across their operating model, with the NCA alone leading over 100 operations targeting OIC networks. But we are still cautious.”

Key to Mr Capps’ analysis are internal Home Office assessments suggesting criminal gangs are struggling to routinely launch in northern France.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “This Government is bearing down on small boat crossings, with removals of small boat migrants at record levels and asylum claims down by 12%.

“The Home Secretary has signed a landmark new payments by results deal with France to boost enforcement action on beaches and put people smugglers behind bars. This builds on joint work that has stopped over 46,000 attempted crossings since the election.

“We have removed or deported almost 70,000 people who were here illegally – an increase of 41% – and are going further to remove the incentives that draw illegal migrants to this country.”