Sir Keir Starmer Has ‘Lost Control of Britain’s Borders’

Almost 1,200 migrants have crossed the Channel to the UK in a single day – as one of Sir Keir Starmer’s ministers said control of Britain’s borders had been lost.

The Prime Minister faced criticism over what was called a ‘day of shame’ as a surge in dinghy crossings overwhelmed French and UK border patrol vessels.

The latest Home Office figures show that 1,194 migrants arrived in 18 boats, bringing the provisional annual total so far to 14,811.

This is 42 per cent higher than the 10,448 at the same point last year and 95 per cent up from the same point in 2023, 7,610, according to PA news agency analysis.

It is still lower than the highest daily total of 1,305 arrivals since data began in 2018, which was recorded on September 3, 2022.

But the total of arrivals for the year, 14,811, is the highest ever recorded for the first five months of a year since data was first recorded on Channel crossings in 2018.

It has also surpassed the highest total recorded for the first six months of the year, which was previously 13,489 on June 30 last year – and n 2024 the number of arrivals did not reach more than 14,000 until July 9, reaching 14,058.

At Gravelines in northern France, more than half a dozen French police officers simply stood by yesterday morning and watched as migrants waded into the sea and scrambled on to an inflatable boat. French authorities said they rescued 184 people.

And today one of Sir Keir’s senior cabinet ministers admitted the scenes were ‘pretty shocking’ as he said the UK had ‘lost control of its borders over the last five years’.

Defence Secretary John Healey this morning told Sky News that the latest crossings revealed a ‘really big problem’ – but insisted there was pressure being put on France for better co-operation and crackdowns ahead.

Britain had agreed a deal in 2023 to pay France £480million over three years to stop the crossings, including £175million in the current financial year – more than £480,000 per day.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp branded the latest Channel scenes ‘a disgrace but sadly entirely expected’ and ‘a day of shame for the Labour Government’.

He added: ‘It’s a shameful failure by the French to discharge their duties to stop illegal migration. The French are failing to stop these crossings by illegal immigrants.

‘Over a thousand illegal immigrants in a single day, boats flooding the Channel, Border Force stretched beyond breaking point, and even fishing vessels drafted in because our maritime rescue services are overwhelmed.’

And Richard Tice MP, deputy leader of Reform UK, said: ‘It looks like we pay hundreds of millions to give French police officers photography lessons because they are certainly not providing any security. Frankly, the Government should be suing the French for our money back.’

At least 18 migrant boats were seen leaving the French coast yesterday, carrying more than 1,000 people – exceeding the previous daily record for 2025 of 825, set earlier last month.

Mr Healey today told Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips on Sky News: ‘Pretty shocking, those scenes yesterday. The truth is, Britain’s lost control of its borders over the last five years.

‘The last government last year left an asylum system in chaos and record levels of immigration.

‘But I think that yesterday tells us a really big problem which is that you’ve got French police unable to intervene to intervene and intercept the boats when they are in shallow water.

‘We saw the smugglers launching elsewhere and coming round like a taxi to pick them up.’

Mr Healey insisted there was ‘new co-operation’ with the French suggesting their officials would intervene in the water.

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