Overview

• Solicitor General Lucy Rigby told MPs she was informed by Crown Prosecution Service prosecutors that traffickers have sedated children to keep them compliant during crossings.
• The CPS said it has received intelligence indicating children are sometimes given sedatives before the journey and vowed to prosecute smugglers.
• Home Office figures put small-boat arrivals in 2025 at more than 29,000, with the most recent crossings recorded on August 26.
• The government says the first removals under a “one in, one out” pilot with France will begin this month, returning some arrivals in exchange for approved entrants from France.
• Ministers cite 35,000 removals, a 30% rise in deportations of failed asylum seekers and a 67% increase in prosecutions for facilitating illegal entry, while Conservative figures challenged the government’s record.