Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today.
At least 20 suspected migrants crossed from France into Britain today and landed on Kent shores, while another 40 were brought into the busy Kent port by Border Force patrol boats.
Photos show tired migrants wearing lifejackets and being escorted up the gangway to the harbourside, where they will be processed by Home Office immigration officials.
A large group, including an Iraqi family of five with children aged around six and seven, dodged Border Force vessels to reach Kingsdown, Kent, on a huge green inflatable boat.
Another group of three Asian migrants, wrapped in blankets and wearing lifejackets, also made it to Folkestone this morning as crossings resumed in large numbers amid low winds.
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
One of the dinghies, packed with lifejackets, that dozens of exhausted migrants used to cross the English Channel today
It is understood that more dinghies, believed to be carrying migrants after a lull in people attempting the dangerous crossing, remain the Channel – and are being monitored by the Coastguard.
The latest arrivals come despite Home Secretary Priti Patel’s vow to make the route ‘unviable’, and the continued row between the Home Office and the legal profession on how to tackle the crossings.
Seventeen refugees crammed on one boat and made it to the UK yesterday. So far this September, a staggering 826 migrants have arrived over six days, including a record 416 migrants on 28 boats last week.
At least 5,851 migrants have reached Britain so far this year, according to estimates.
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Dozens of exhausted migrants including families with young children waited on the side of the road to be picked up near Kingsdown Beach in Kent after crossing the English Channel today
Suspected migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, by Border Force officers following a small boat incident in the Channel
Suspected migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, by Border Force officers following a small boat incident in the Channel
Suspected migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, by Border Force officers following a small boat incident in the Channel
Suspected migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, by Border Force officers following a small boat incident in the Channel
The Coastguard, the RNLI and the Border Force cutter Seeker are all active today responding to migrants making the dangerous journey. French patrol forces are also active across the water border.
Responding to today’s migrant crossings, Nigel Farage said: ‘Total chaos in the Channel this morning. Border Force can’t cope, there have been several beach landings and some migrants have now disappeared into the hills.’
A Border Force vessel was seen towing four dinghies, thought to have been used by migrants, into Kent harbour.
Meanwhile, Border Force officials detained 223 migrants in 18 dinghies after they crossed the Channel to reach the UK on Monday – as French authorities stopped another 106 people making the crossing.
Suspected migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, by Border Force officers following a small boat incident in the Channel
A Border Force Officer carries a child migrant at Dover Marina after being rescued in the English Channel by the Border Force
Suspected migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, by Border Force officers following a small boat incident in the Channel
Suspected migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, by Border Force officers following a small boat incident in the Channel
Dan O’Mahoney, Clandestine Channel Threat Commander, said he has been working with counterparts in France to ‘make this route completely unviable’. They also revealed a further 106 people in eight boats were stopped by French authorities before they could get into UK waters.
Mr O’Mahoney said: ‘These crossings are facilitated by criminals willing to risk people’s lives for money. France is a safe country with a fully functioning asylum system – those seeking refuge can and should claim asylum there.
‘I continue to work with my counterparts in France on a daily basis to make this route completely unviable, and this morning the French stopped more migrants leaving the coastline.
‘Though I recognise the number still reaching the UK remains too high. We continue to return those who do not have a legitimate asylum claim despite barriers to removals under the Dublin Regulations and legal challenges.’
An empty migrant dinghy is collected by Border Force off the beach at St Margaret’s Bay on September 11, 2020 in Dover
Migrants wait on the beach at St Margaret’s Bay after landing by dinghy from France on September 11, 2020 in Dover
Migrants wait on the beach at St Margaret’s Bay after landing by dinghy from France on September 11, 2020 in Dover
A migrant removes his wet clothing at the beach at St Margaret’s Bay after landing by dinghy on September 11, 2020 in Dover
Migrants wait on the beach at St Margaret’s Bay after landing by dinghy from France on September 11, 2020 in Dover
Migrants wait on the beach at St Margaret’s Bay after landing by dinghy from France on September 11, 2020 in Dover