In all, more than 600 people in 14 boats made it to the UK on Thursday. This year, this means just under 30,000 people who illegally crossed the Channel and entered the country. Over the whole of 2021, that was more than 28,500 people.
The Conservative government in London is trying to curtail migration across the Channel, the world’s busiest shipping route, with little success so far. To discourage people smugglers, an agreement was concluded with the Central African region of Rwanda: migrants would have to await the decision on their application there. They can stay in Rwanda if that application is accepted, otherwise they have to return to their country of origin. The agreement was criticized from various quarters. The only flight scheduled to date was ultimately canceled after an intervention by a European court.