Overview

• Over 21,000 migrants have crossed the English Channel in small boats during the first half of 2025, representing a 48 percent increase over the same period last year.
• Negotiations on a bilateral ‘one in, one out’ returns scheme remain unresolved after objections from five EU member states and outstanding technical protocols.
• French gendarmes have begun trialling shallow-water interdiction tactics, including puncturing dinghies with knives and deploying jet-ski-deployed nets to jam propellers.
• Backbench Labour MPs led by Clive Lewis have threatened to rebel, arguing that the planned deal sidelines safe and legal routes for asylum seekers.
• Humanitarian groups and legal advisers warn that forceful maritime interdictions and complex EU readmission rules risk endangering lives and delaying the agreement.