UK struggles to contain flow of Channel migrants

The United Kingdom's policies aimed at limiting the number of unauthorized migrants crossing the English Channel from France have not had a significant impact, data shows.

The issue remains deeply contentious, but commentators agree more needs to be done to find solutions, address the root cause of the crisis, manage arrivals, and address the problem of how asylum-seekers and migrants should be housed.

According to Frontex, the European border security agency in Warsaw, Poland, 5,622 migrants are known to have landed on the UK's Kent coast in January and February, an increase of 82 percent over the corresponding period last year.

The UK government's bill addressing illegal immigration proposes to stop people from crossing the English Channel in small boats, but critics say the plans are unworkable and will be blocked by challenges in the European Court of Human Rights.

Despite criticism from lawmakers, the illegal migration bill was passed in Parliament on April 26, by 289 votes to 230. The bill now goes to the House of Lords, where it could still be amended or delayed.

The government has made plans to deter asylum-seekers by sending some to Rwanda for processing, but that idea faces strong opposition and is being contested in the courts because, under UK law, asylum-seekers have the right to remain in the country while their claim is being processed.

Nearly 45,000 irregular migrants — those without authorization or with false papers — have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel since the government signed its Rwanda deal a year ago, according to new analysis of government figures by the PA news agency. According to official forecasts, more than 80,000 will arrive by the end of this year.

During the first week of last month, coinciding with improved weather, more than 1,000 migrants made the risky voyage across the Channel, according to official figures. The year's highest daily total for known arrivals, 492, was recorded on April 5.

To tackle the migrant crisis in the Channel, cooperation between the UK and France is crucial. Both countries need to work together to enhance their border controls, deter human smugglers and trafficking networks, and provide safe and legal routes for asylum-seekers, lawmakers said.

A joint statement was issued after the UK-France leaders' summit in March pledged to "drastically reduce" the number of channel crossings. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and France's President Emmanuel Macron signed a deal through which London will give France $576 million in the next three years to help it stop boats leaving its shores.

But Enver Solomon, CEO of the NGO Refugee Council in the UK, said the immigration bill is "draconian legislation" that stains the UK's "reputation for fairness in the face of adversity".

"All the evidence shows that the vast majority of those who come here by so-called irregular routes are refugees escaping bombs and bullets, violence and persecution."

Peter William Walsh, senior researcher and lecturer in migration studies at the University of Oxford's Migration Observatory, said that most of those attempting the hazardous journey "come from some of the most chaotic parts that are suffering war, or ethnic and sectarian conflict of various kinds".

"We saw a large increase in Afghans arriving in small boats last year, due to the fall of Kabul and the crisis there, and from Syria, Yemen, and Iran," he said.

English connection

However, one question frequently raised in discussions on migrants is why people who make it as far as France do not stay there, and why some risk the additional journey across the Channel.

"When we've spoken with asylum-seekers to the UK in the past, their answer has been the presence of family members or members of the community," Walsh said."That's often a pull factor for asylum-seekers."

The UK is also popular as an ultimate destination because English is widely spoken and many migrants find it preferable to make their way to England rather than learn Italian, German, French, or Spanish, he said.

"Another thing that asylum-seekers tell us is that they actually have a perception of the UK as being a safe, welcoming, and democratic country, perhaps more so than other comparable European countries."

In an interview with the ConservativeHome news website this month, Sunak said the immigration issue is "complicated" with "no single, simple solution".

His government wants to change the law so people arriving in the UK illegally will not be allowed to stay and will either face deportation back to their home country or to a third country, such as Rwanda.

Zheng Wanyin in London contributed to this story.