More than 520 migrants cross Channel in just eight boats

Record set for overcrowding with nearly 66 migrants per dinghy

More than 520 migrants crossed the Channel in only eight boats on Tuesday, setting a new record for overcrowding.
The 526 people intercepted by Border Force as they crossed meant there were nearly 66 per dinghy. It was the fifth highest number of migrants to have reached Britain in one day so far this year.
It reflects a growing trend by people-smugglers to pack more migrants into each boat, with crackdowns by border agencies and law enforcement having limited supplies of dinghies and equipment.
The numbers per boat have more than tripled this year, from an average of below 20 when Channel crossings started to rise in 2021. 
The 526 people crossing takes the provisional total in 2024 to 19,820, 0.1 per cent higher than at the same point last year (19,801) and 21 per cent lower than in 2022 (25,065).
Pictures showed men, women and children wearing lifejackets and blankets disembarking from a Border Force vessel in Dover, Kent, on Tuesday. One child was assisted with a wheelchair on arrival at the port.
They were the first arrivals in a week since 206 people made the journey on Aug 19, according to Home Office data.
However, with clear weather, a calm sea and light winds on Wednesday, the numbers are expected to be potentially as big as on Tuesday, which would take the total number of arrivals for the year past 20,000.
The number of migrants per boat on Wednesday is expected to be lower because it is a warmer day, which increases the risk of flimsy dinghies bursting.
Officials have blamed the overcrowding for an apparent increase in deaths, not only through drowning but also by being crushed on overloaded boats. There have been at least 25 deaths in the Channel this year.
Last month, a woman died on board a small boat packed with more than 70 people after it got into difficulty crossing the Channel. The woman was found unconscious after rescue vessels had transferred people to safety from the boat. 
It followed the death of a woman when an overloaded dinghy carrying 86 migrants got into difficulties as it crossed the Channel.
The largest number of arrivals on a single day was on June 18, when 882 people reached the UK, followed by 711 on May 1, 703 on August 11 and 534 on April 10.
A Home Office spokesman said: “We all want to see an end to dangerous small boat crossings, which are undermining border security and putting lives at risk.
“The Government is taking steps to boost our border security, setting up a new Border Security Command, which will bring together our intelligence and enforcement agencies, equipped with new counter-terror-style powers and hundreds of personnel stationed in the UK and overseas, to smash the criminal smuggling gangs making millions in profit.”