More than 26,000 migrants cross the Channel into Britain this year after 900 arrive on Saturday

More than 26,000 migrants cross the Channel into Britain this year after 900 arrive on Saturday
migrant footage Mark White EXCL
Mark White

By Mark White


Published: 04/09/2022

- 09:58

Updated: 04/09/2022

- 10:20

GB News can reveal the total number of Channel migrant crossings this year so far is 26,330

The number of people crossing the English Channel in small boats has passed 26,000 this year, after more than 900 crossed on Saturday.

Official figures released by the Ministry of Defence show that 960 were detected in the Channel crossing on 20 small boats.


Analysis of the latest arrivals by GB News reveal that a total of 26,330 have made it to the UK so far this year on almost 700 small boats.

Weather conditions in the Channel had been poor for most of last week, preventing any small boat crossings since Saturday 27 August, when 915 people arrived on 19 boats.

A group of people thought to be migrants walk ashore in Dungeness, Kent, after being intercepted by the Dungeness Lifeboat following a small boat incident in the Channel.
A group of people thought to be migrants walk ashore in Dungeness, Kent, after being intercepted by the Dungeness Lifeboat following a small boat incident in the Channel.
Gareth Fuller

The weather improved enough on Friday for people smugglers to successfully launch five inflatables toward the UK.

A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dungeness, Kent, by the RNLI, following a small boat incident in the Channel.
A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dungeness, Kent, by the RNLI, following a small boat incident in the Channel.
Gareth Fuller

They were picked up by British authorities as they crossed into UK waters and 221 people were taken to the migrant processing centre at Dover harbour.

Yesterday, the first small boats were spotted by Border Force before first light.

The Border Force catamaran Defender brought more than 80 people, recovered from two small boats, into Dover harbour around 5:30am.

Throughout the day on Saturday, Border Force and RNLI lifeboats responded to back to back sightings of small boats, which continued into the evening.

August saw the biggest monthly arrival of Channel migrants since the small boat crisis with began more than four years ago.

8,644 were taken off 189 inflatables in August, including 1,295 on 22 August, the biggest daily total on record.

Today, more than 200 people have already arrived on small boats, with Border Force responding to a number of other incidents.

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