Migrant mayhem as 1,619 asylum seekers landed in UK in May

Britain braced for summer of migrant mayhem: Fears of ‘mob unrest’ by asylum seekers who land in UK to be told there is no housing for them – as ‘phenomenal’ numbers continue to arrive despite Priti’s vow of border crackdown

  • More than 500 migrants arrived across Channel in final four days of May bringing monthly total to 1,619
  • Friday was busiest day of 2021 with 336 migrants reaching Britain aboard 19 dinghies and other boats
  • Priti Patel has vowed to make illegal immigration across Channel ‘unviable’ but numbers are still soaring
  • Dover’s Conservative MP Natalie Elphicke has called for ‘urgent action’ to stop the Channel crossings

Britain is braced for a summer of migrant chaos after more than 500 arrived across the Channel in the last four days of May, bringing the monthly total to more than double last year’s.

Friday was the busiest day of the year so far with 336 migrants reaching Britain aboard 19 dinghies and other small boats – and immigration union officials have issued a warning of ‘mob unrest’ over accommodation delays.

Migrants who are intercepted in the Channel by Border Force are taken to the Port of Dover where they are screened in a shipping container before being held at the Kent Intake Unit where they can make an asylum claim.

Adults have an initial interview before being sent to hostel-style accommodation centres across Britain, paid for by UK taxpayers, but there are fears there will be delays in them being moved amid ‘phenomenal’ numbers of arrivals.

The migrants are given £37.75 per week for essentials like food, clothes and toiletries while they wait for a decision on their asylum application. Kent County Council normally takes unaccompanied children into its care.

In total, May saw 1,619 migrants make the perilous journey from northern France – up 118 per cent on the 741 who arrived in May last year. In addition, there were several hundred further migrants seen arriving in Dover yesterday.

Home Secretary Priti Patel has vowed to make illegal immigration across the Channel ‘unviable’ – but numbers are continuing to soar, and Dover MP Natalie Elphicke has called for ‘urgent action’ to stop the crossings. 

So far this year the total number of migrants to reach the UK stands at 3,727 – up 115 per cent on the running total at the same point last year. This does not include yesterday’s unconfirmed figure, which is estimated at about 200.

During the whole of 2020, 8,410 people – including women and children – reached the UK. If arrivals continue at the same accelerated rate for the rest of the year, it could mean an annual total of nearly 18,000.  

Witnesses estimate as many as 200 people were brought in to Dover Marina aboard a Border Force cutter yesterday 

Figures have not yet been confirmed but witnesses estimate as many as 200 people were brought in to Dover yesterday

A child walks off a boat after an estimated 200 migrants were brought into Dover Marina in Kent yesterday

In total, May saw 1,619 migrants make the perilous journey from northern France – up 118 per cent on the 741 in May last year

Lucy Moreton, professional officer for the ISU immigration union, told the Daily Telegraph: ‘Border Force staff are feeling increasingly threatened. There is a risk of unrest from these groups.

‘They are not exhausted, beaten down and glad to be here. They know they are going to be moved into accommodation. They want to be moved into accommodation. If that doesn’t happen promptly, they get cross about it.

‘They have to be clothed but we cannot provide hot food there. They might not have eaten anything. There is a mob mentality that takes over. The vast majority are young males. The families and children are moved clear quickly.

‘These are groups of people used to acting together to get what they need and frequently we cannot understand what they are saying to each other. The numbers arriving are phenomenal.’

Apart from the 336 arrivals on Friday, there were 144 on Saturday, 17 on Sunday and 71 on Bank Holiday Monday, as people traffickers took advantage of fine weather conditions. 

A child is guided by a Border Force official after getting off a boat at Dover Marina in Kent yesterday

Migrants arrive at the Kent coast after being brought into Britain by a Border Force cutter yesterday


Migrants arrive in Dover yesterday after travelling across the English Channel from northern France

People traffickers have been taking advantage of fine weather conditions, including off the Kent coast yesterday

It made a total of 568 over the four day period. French authorities also prevented 306 migrants from crossing aboard 18 boats. A further number of migrants reached the UK yesterday.

Figures have not yet been confirmed by the Home Office but witnesses estimated as many as 200 people were brought in to Dover Marina, in Kent, aboard a Border Force cutter at around noon.

A Home Office spokesman said: ‘Criminal gangs are putting profits before people’s lives through these dangerous and unnecessary crossings.

‘More than 3,500 people have been prevented from making the dangerous crossing so far this year and we are cracking down on the despicable criminal gangs behind people smuggling. Inaction is not an option whilst people are dying.

‘The Government is bringing legislation forward through our New Plan for Immigration which will break the business model of these heinous people smuggling networks and save lives.’ 

A child holds a woman’s hand while on board a Border Force vessel after being brought into Dover yesterday

As many as 200 people were brought in to Dover Marina aboard a Border Force cutter at around noon yesterday

A dinghy at Dover Marina yesterday after an estimated 200 migrants were brought into shore on board a Border Force cutter

A child is pictured at Dover Marina yesterday after an estimated 200 migrants arrived at the Kent coast

Last year’s total was more than four times the number seen in the previous 12 months. Conservative MP for Dover Natalie Elphicke said: ‘Urgent action must be taken to stop these crossings.

‘That means tackling the criminal gangs at source, doing more to stop the small boats leaving France in the first place, turning them round in the Channel, and swiftly returning people who have entered the country through an illegal route of entry.

‘The Government’s new border system plans are straightforward and sensible but we also need more and firmer action now.’

Mrs Patel vowed in the autumn that the illegal journeys would be virtually eliminated by spring, but there is mounting frustration in Whitehall that the French authorities are not doing enough to stop them. 

Under the plan, patrols along the French coast were doubled and drones deployed as part of a £6million Home Office investment so the authorities in France could intercept boats before they even set sail.

A child wears a lifejacket on board a Border Force cutter yesterday as migrants are brought into the Kent coast at Dover

The Border Force cutter arrives at Dover Marina yesterday, with the town’s famous castle visible in the background

A dinghy is pictured at Dover Marina yesterday following the Channel crossing by an estimated 200 migrants

Home Secretary Priti Patel (pictured in March) has vowed to make illegal immigration across the Channel ‘unviable’

People smugglers are now targeting new routes across the Channel. Small boats are increasingly also landing at Hastings, East Sussex – a crossing of 40 miles, twice the distance from Calais to Dover.

Migrants pay up to £13,000 for a place in a rickety dinghy, spurred on by the belief that if rescued by UK cutters they will be brought here.

Speaking in April, Tony Smith, ex-head of the Border Force, said: ‘The Government has not got a grip. For the migrants and people-smugglers, success breeds success. 

‘They see people getting into the UK… and it fuels the supply chain. We have got to say we will no longer tolerate this.’

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