Negotiations over a replacement agreement between Britain and France to tackle small boat crossings are intensifying this week, as figures show close to a thousand migrants have reached UK shores in less than a week.
According to GB News figures, 17 small boats carried a total of 982 people across the English Channel over a six-day period, with the recent surge driven largely by a window of calmer weather that opened last Wednesday. Crossings took place on five of those six days before conditions worsened again on Monday evening, rendering the Channel impassable for migrant dinghies for the time being.
A Home Office delegation is expected in Paris this week for talks aimed at securing a successor to the current Franco-British migration agreement, which is due to expire at the end of the month. The previous arrangement, struck in 2023, was worth £478 million and funded additional patrols and coastal infrastructure on the French side, including plans for a detention facility.
Despite that investment, the number of people completing the crossing has continued to climb. More than 41,000 arrivals were recorded via small boats in 2025, with over 4,000 already making the journey in the early months of this year alone, according to GB News.
Downing Street has said it is focused on securing “long-term value for money” from any new deal. The Home Secretary is understood to be seeking tougher terms this time around, including performance-related clauses that would link funding to the number of boats stopped before reaching British waters. Officials have not disclosed what financial package the UK is prepared to offer.
On Monday alone, 270 migrants arrived following interceptions by Border Force vessels responding to multiple dinghy sightings throughout the day. GB News observed 62 people disembarking from the Border Force vessel Defender at Dover harbour shortly after midday. A further 71 were later brought ashore aboard the vessel Typhoon following the interception of the final dinghy of the day.
Maritime security sources cited by GB News suggested that conditions may ease again later in the week, with late Thursday night into Friday identified as a potential flashpoint for renewed arrivals.
Government sources have pointed to tens of thousands of prevented crossings in recent years as evidence that cooperation with France has produced results, while acknowledging that further action is needed to reduce the number of departures from French beaches.
Source: GB News
