Overview

• Home Office figures recorded 1,194 migrants crossing on May 31, the highest daily figure of 2025, lifting total arrivals to 14,811—a 42% increase over the same period in 2024.
• French interception rates have fallen to 38% this year, the lowest since 2018, despite a £480 million Anglo-French agreement to curb departures.
• Defence Secretary John Healey described the Channel crossings as “shocking” and pressed France to implement shallow-water boat intercept powers.
• Stretched to breaking point, UK and French rescue services deployed vessels and aircraft across 18 boats, while the coastguard appealed to fishing vessels for assistance.
• Opposition figures branded the wave of arrivals a “day of shame” and demanded Prime Minister Keir Starmer intensify efforts to dismantle people-smuggling gangs.