France and UK to work on migrant boat crossings, France to get additional funding

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has said France will receive additional funding to prevent small boats from crossing the Channel. 

He made the announcement ahead of an Anglo-French summit where small boat crossings and the conflict in Ukraine will be discussed. 

However, returning migrants arriving in the UK to France is not expected to be on the agenda. 

The UK government has previously paid France £8m annually to increase surveillance of French beaches, and it is believed that they will give France over £200m over three years, according to The Times. 

The government announced controversial plans to deter people from making the crossing by removing anyone found to have entered the country illegally within 28 days and blocking them from returning or claiming British citizenship in the future. Additionally, those arriving on the UK’s beaches would either be returned to their home country or another “safe third country.”

More than 45,000 people entered the UK via Channel crossings last year, up from about 300 in 2018. 

While around 3,000 people have arrived on small boats this year, the two governments claim their joint work has stopped a similar number from embarking on the journey. 

The two countries are expected to make an announcement on deepening cooperation on the issue. However, there will not be an agreement where France takes back migrants who have reached the UK. The absence of such an agreement has been criticised by Labour as a “total failure.”

The relationship between the UK and France on this issue has improved significantly in recent years, according to the British government. 

However, the goal to make the small boat route across the Channel unviable is a bold ambition, given that the number of crossings have continued to increase. 

Brexit stumbling block but France and UK united 

Officials point out that both the UK and France are nuclear powers, members of the G7, G20, and the NATO defence alliance, and permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. 

Despite Brexit being a stumbling block in recent years, both London and Paris are keen to emphasise their closeness on many other issues, particularly Ukraine.

A joint statement is expected to be issued by PM Rishi Sunak and President Macron after the summit.