Highlights:
- 28,076 migrants have crossed the Channel in small boats in 2025, a 46% increase from 2024.
- Protests continue outside hotels housing asylum seekers.
- Labour government promises end to hotel use by 2029 and asylum reforms.
- Nigel Farage proposes “mass deportations” and leaving the European Convention on Human Rights.
A RECORD 28,076 migrants have crossed the Channel to Britain in small boats this year, according to government data released on Monday. The figure marks a 46 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2024.
The surge has added pressure on prime minister Keir Starmer over immigration, which has become the public’s top concern in opinion polls.
Protests have been taking place outside hotels where asylum seekers are being housed.
The new record was reached on Sunday, when 212 migrants arrived in four boats, the data showed. The Home Office did not immediately comment.
ALSO READ: Starmer under fire as asylum claims hit record high
Over the weekend, demonstrations were held across the country after a court ordered asylum seekers to be removed from a hotel in Epping, north-east of London. The case has become a focal point in the debate over immigration.
The Labour government has promised to end the use of hotels for housing asylum seekers by 2029 and to reform the asylum process. On Sunday, it announced measures to speed up appeals and cut a backlog of more than 100,000 cases.
Home secretary Yvette Cooper said the reforms were intended to bring “control and order” to what she described as “a system in complete chaos.”
Official figures last week showed asylum claims had reached record levels, with more migrants placed in hotels than a year earlier.
Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform UK party, which has recently led polls on voting intentions, set out proposals for “mass deportations” of migrants arriving on small boats.
His plan includes leaving the European Convention on Human Rights, blocking asylum claims, and building detention centres for 24,000 people.
Farage told The Times that he would seek repatriation agreements with countries including Afghanistan and Eritrea and organise daily deportation flights.
(With inputs from agencies)
