More than 3,600 migrants crossed the Channel to the UK in July, the highest monthly total this year. The total was revealed amid reports the Home Secretary could announce another multimillion-pound deal with France in a bid to curb the crossings.
Some 3,683 made the crossing on 90 boats in the 31-day period, with journeys taking place on 20 of those days, according to PA news agency analysis of government figures. According to newspaper reports, Home secretary Priti Patel is intending to pay the French government tens of millions of pounds for more beach patrols and surveillance equipment.
This is in addition to more than £80 million already provided over the last few years, and it is more than three months since Ms Patel unveiled plans to send migrants to Rwanda to try to deter people from crossings the Channel.
However, since then 11,131 have arrived in the UK after making the journey with dozens of people, including several young children, brought ashore in Ramsgate on Monday morning. A large group of people, including some wrapped in blankets, were seen leaving the Kent port on a double decker bus.
No arrivals were recorded on Sunday but on Saturday 460 people made the crossing in 12 boats, the highest daily figure since 445 were recorded on July 11, making it the sixth time this year the figure has topped 400. April 13 remains the highest figure so far in 2022 (651).
Of the 16,389 people who have made the perilous trip so far this year, the second highest month for crossings was 3,139 in June and the third highest was 3,074 in March, according to Home Office figures for the first quarter and subsequent provisional data collected by the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
After navigating busy shipping lanes from France in small boats such as dinghies, 2,884 made the crossing in May, 2, 143 in April, 1,322 in January and 144 in February. The highest month on record since 2018 is November 2021 when 6,971 crossings took place.
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