Latest news with #ChrisPhilp
The Sun
19 hours ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Labour accused of signing up to ‘migrant merry-go-round with France
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp has slammed the plan for failing to reduce overall numbers GIMMICK BOAT DEAL Labour accused of signing up to 'migrant merry-go-round with France LABOUR was last night accused of signing up to a 'migrant merry-go-round' with France. Ministers are expected to reach a 'one in, one-out' returns deal with the French in a bid to deter small boats. Advertisement 1 Labour's planned 'one in, one-out' returns deal with France has been slammed as a gimmick The agreement would see France take back Channel crossers in return for the UK accepting a legitimate asylum seeker with family already here. Sir Keir Starmer is under pressure to turn the tide on a record year of small boats after promising to 'smash the gangs' in the election. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and her French counterpart Bruno Retailleau believe the returns plan would break the business model of the criminals. A government source said: 'It'll start as a pilot but it's to prove the point that if you pay for your passage on a boat then you could quite quickly find yourself back in France.' Advertisement But Tory Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp branded the proposals a 'gimmick'. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: 'We pay the French half a billion pounds to wave the boats off from Calais, and in return we get a migrant merry-go-round where the same number still come here. 'The French are failing to stop the boats at sea, failing to return them like the Belgians do, and now instead of demanding real enforcement, Labour are trying a 'one in, one out' gimmick.'
Metro
a day ago
- Politics
- Metro
Migrants could soon be deported to France from the UK in a 'one in one out' deal
The UK and France will unveil a 'one in, one out' migrant returns deal to crack down on English Channel crossings. Plans for a pilot programme could be revealed next week, which marks one year since Keir Starmer's Labour government came to power, or later in the summer, according to The Times. The deal could see migrants who arrive in the UK by crossing the English Channel in small boats returned to France, but the UK would accept those with legitimate claims to join family already in the country. The government previously vowed to crack down on people smuggling gangs across the Channel, while crossings are at a record high for this point in the year, totalling 18,518. French officials have also agreed to changes that would allow police patrolling the coast to take action in the sea when migrants climb into boats from the water. Under the new returns deal, a joint processing system between the UK and France would be set up to identify migrants who have a valid claim for family reunification in the UK. For each person accepted to come to the UK, a migrant would be returned to France and relocated across the country away from its northern coastline where crossings take place. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said of the deal: 'We pay the French half a billion pounds to wave the boats off from Calais, and in return we get a migrant merry-go-round where the same number still come here. 'The French are failing to stop the boats at sea, failing to return them like the Belgians do, and now instead of demanding real enforcement, Labour are trying a 'one in, one out' gimmick.' Earlier this month, the Defence Secretary said the UK had 'lost control of its borders' in the past five years, after a new high for Channel crossings was recorded. John Healey blamed the previous Conservative government for failing to control the small boats crisis in an appearance on Sky News. He described scenes of migrants piling on flimsy crafts for the dangerous crossing from France to England this month as 'pretty shocking'. In February, the government in Paris agreed to change the law so the boats could be intercepted in shallow waters. More Trending However, the move has still not been formally implemented, and just 184 of the 1,378 migrants who attempted a crossing on May 31 were rescued. Healey said: 'They're not doing it, but for the first time we've got the level of cooperation needed, we've got the agreement that they will change the way they work. 'And our concentration now is to push them to get that into operation, so they can intercept these smugglers and stop these people in the boats, not just on the shore. 'That'll be part of, part of, I hope, dealing with this absolutely intolerable problem.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: All of Keir Starmer's welfare cut U-turns 'will cost £4,500,000,000' MORE: Boy, 12, and man, 59, killed after flash floods sweep through France MORE: The secret choice Starmer has already made to save the UK from nuclear war
The Independent
a day ago
- Politics
- The Independent
UK and France to agree migrant return deal to tackle Channel crossings
The UK and France are expected to announce a one in, one out migrant returns deal to crack down on English Channel crossings, it has been reported. Plans for a pilot could be revealed next week, which marks one year since Sir Keir Starmer's Government came to power, or later in the summer, according to the Times. The deal could see migrants who arrive in the UK by crossing the English Channel in small boats returned to France, while the UK would accept those with legitimate claims to join family already in the country. It comes as the Government has vowed to crack down on people smuggling gangs across the Channel, while crossings are at a record high for this point in the year, totalling 18,518. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has been leading the talks, the paper added, who is credited with strengthening relationships with French counterparts. French officials have also agreed to changes that would allow police patrolling the coast to take action in the sea when migrants climb into boats from the water. Under the new returns deal, a joint processing system between the UK and France would be set up to identify migrants who have a valid claim for family reunification in the UK, the Times reported. For each person accepted to come to the UK, a migrant would be returned to France and relocated across the country away from its northern coastline where crossings take place. But reacting to the reports, shadow home secretary Chris Philp said: 'We pay the French half a billion pounds to wave the boats off from Calais, and in return we get a migrant merry-go-round where the same number still come here. 'The French are failing to stop the boats at sea, failing to return them like the Belgians do, and now instead of demanding real enforcement, Labour are trying a 'one in, one out' gimmick.'
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
UK and France to agree migrant return deal to tackle Channel crossings
The UK and France are expected to announce a one in, one out migrant returns deal to crack down on English Channel crossings, it has been reported. Plans for a pilot could be revealed next week, which marks one year since Sir Keir Starmer's Government came to power, or later in the summer, according to the Times. The deal could see migrants who arrive in the UK by crossing the English Channel in small boats returned to France, while the UK would accept those with legitimate claims to join family already in the country. It comes as the Government has vowed to crack down on people smuggling gangs across the Channel, while crossings are at a record high for this point in the year, totalling 18,518. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has been leading the talks, the paper added, who is credited with strengthening relationships with French counterparts. French officials have also agreed to changes that would allow police patrolling the coast to take action in the sea when migrants climb into boats from the water. Under the new returns deal, a joint processing system between the UK and France would be set up to identify migrants who have a valid claim for family reunification in the UK, the Times reported. For each person accepted to come to the UK, a migrant would be returned to France and relocated across the country away from its northern coastline where crossings take place. But reacting to the reports, shadow home secretary Chris Philp said: 'We pay the French half a billion pounds to wave the boats off from Calais, and in return we get a migrant merry-go-round where the same number still come here. 'The French are failing to stop the boats at sea, failing to return them like the Belgians do, and now instead of demanding real enforcement, Labour are trying a 'one in, one out' gimmick.'
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Labour poised to announce 'one in, one out' migrant exchange deal with France - but Tories dub it 'pathetic'
The Conservatives have blasted a 'pathetic' plan being drawn up by Labour to send small boat migrants back to France in exchange for other types of asylum seekers. Ministers are reported to be on the cusp of announcing a deal with president Emmanuel Macron 's government which would see France accept returns of Channel migrants for the first time. But for each migrant returned back across the Channel the UK would accept another asylum seeker in a 'one in, one out' exchange, it is understood. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp branded it 'pathetic' and said Labour should never have scrapped the previous government's Rwanda asylum scheme, which was designed to deter Channel crossings. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is expected to announce the new agreement within days, in the run-up to the first anniversary of Labour's return to power, which falls a week tomorrow. Amid an intensifying Channel crisis, the Government will hope the deal will reduce the number of migrants crossing illegally by dinghy – who may be deterred because they could be sent back almost immediately. However, how the scheme will work – and its full impact – remains unknown at this stage. Britain will reportedly accept asylum seekers from France on a 'one for one' basis. They are likely to be those who already have relatives living in this country. Mr Philp said: 'We pay the French half a billion pounds to wave the boats off from Calais, and in return we get a migrant merry-go-round where the same number still come here. 'The French are failing to stop the boats at sea, failing to return them like the Belgians do, and now instead of demanding real enforcement, Labour are trying a 'one in, one out' gimmick. 'If Labour were serious, they would not have scrapped the returns deterrent the National Crime Agency said we needed - instead, they've surrendered our immigration system. Pathetic.' It comes after 118 migrants reached Britain on Wednesday, bringing the total since Labour came to power to 41,760, up 34 per cent on the same period in 2023-24. Earlier this week it emerged that migrants living in taxpayer-funded asylum hotels are securing work as fast food delivery riders within hours of entering Britain. Mr Philp said he had found evidence of asylum seekers breaking rules which bar them from working while their claim is processed by the Home Office. The Tory frontbencher visited an asylum hotel in central London and posted a video showing bicycles fitted with delivery boxes for Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats parked outside. Latest Home Office figures show there are about 32,000 asylum seekers in hotels in the UK. Sir Keir scrapped the Rwanda scheme as one of his first acts in office. The deal would have seen small boat migrants handed a one-way ticket to the east African nation to claim asylum there rather than in the UK. Labour replaced the scheme with measures to boost law enforcement, in a bid to 'smash the gangs' behind the deadly Channel crossings aboard overloaded, sub-standard dinghies. On Tuesday the borders watchdog said he was 'not convinced' Labour's plan will end the Channel crisis, and predicted ministers will fail to meet their target to end use of asylum hotels by end of this Parliament. Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration David Bolt said he had written to ministers to express his doubts about the plan. It was first reported in April that Britain and France were in talks about a migrant returns deal. At that stage it was mooted to be a pilot scheme.
