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IMMIGRATION

More than 1,000 migrants cross Channel in seven days

492 last Wednesday was new one-day record for the year
Last Tuesday 201 migrants crossed the Channel in small boats
Last Tuesday 201 migrants crossed the Channel in small boats
GARETH FULLER/PA

More than 1,000 migrants have crossed the Channel in the past week, a record for the year, amid reports that 19 suspected terrorists arrived illegally from northern France last year.

On Sunday 180 migrants crossed in four boats, an average of 45 in each. It took the weekly total to 1,056.

The number of migrants who have crossed in the past week is more than double the capacity of the barge that the Home Office has leased for 18 months, which will be docked in Portland, Dorset. The vessel, hired from Bibby Marine, will accommodate up to 506 adult male migrants from the summer.

The Home Office is leasing a barge which will hold just over 500 men at Portland in Dorset
The Home Office is leasing a barge which will hold just over 500 men at Portland in Dorset
GETTY IMAGES

The Home Office has announced three other sites to accommodate migrants, at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire, the MoD site at Wethersfield,