- The UK has agreed a £662 million deal with France over three years to increase policing of small boat migrants on beaches, including riot-trained officers and a 40 per cent rise in enforcement staff.
- Charities like Safe Passage International and Care4Calais warn that this deal will not deter crossings but instead force migrants into more dangerous journeys, potentially leading to further deaths.
- A significant portion of the funding, £160 million, is conditional on the deal successfully stopping a sufficient number of journeys.
- Critics say that similar previous agreements, including one under Rishi Sunak, failed to reduce crossings and were linked to an increase in migrant deaths in the Channel.
- Experts and charities argue that the only effective solution to stop crossings is to establish safe and legal routes for refugees to claim asylum in the UK, rather than focusing solely on enforcement.
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