LONDON, Jan 02 (AFP): Nearly 30,000 migrants crossed the Channel from mainland Europe to Britain in small boats in 2023, an annual drop of more than a third, according to government figures released on Monday.
But the unauthorised arrival of 29,437 people on the southeast English coast is still the second-largest yearly tally since officials began publishing the numbers in 2018.
The perilous journeys across one of the world's busiest shipping lanes have become a political headache for Britain's Conservative government, with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak vowing last year to "stop the boats".
One of five key pledges he made for 2023, the promise of reducing persistently high numbers of migrant arrivals could haunt the Tory leader as he attempts to win a general election due this year.
Sunak said last month that there was no "firm date" for meeting his pledge.
Responding to Monday's statistics, his Downing Street office pointed to a 36-percent reduction in small-boat arrivals last year, after a record 45,000 migrants made the journey in 2022.
It credited "robust action" targeting "small boat gangs" -- partly through a £480 million ($610 million) collaboration agreement with France -- alongside fast-track migrant return deals struck with countries such as Albania.
Nearly 30,000 migrants crossed Channel to reach UK last year
FE Team | Published: January 02, 2024 21:52:35
Nearly 30,000 migrants crossed Channel to reach UK last year
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