Number of migrants to cross English Channel in small boats this year passes 4,500 mark with more than 3,000 people arriving this month alone – triple the amount in March 2021

• More than 4,500 migrants have arrived in the first three months of 2022 alone
• Migrants crossing the Channel in small boats were brought to shore by the RNLI 
• Despite poor weather conditions, 395 migrants were intercepted on Monday  
• March 2022 has seen a year-on-year tripling in the number of migrant crossings  

More than 4,500 migrants have crossed the English Channel by small boat so far this year, with more than 3,000 people arriving in March alone.

March has seen 3,075 migrants arrive on British soil – more than the total number of people who made the journey in January, February, March and April combined last year, and over triple the 831 who arrived in the entirety of March in 2021. 

It is the highest monthly figure since November last year, when 6,869 people made the perilous journey across the 21-mile Dover Strait. 

The total number of migrants to make the treacherous trip across the Channel this year now stands at 4,559 across 146 boats – a level that was not reached until June in 2021.

Migrant crossings were expected to dwindle over the coming days as the weather deteriorated, bringing strong winds, poor visibility and rain.

Children wearing life jackets and wrapped in blankets were seen among the groups of migrants being escorted into the Dover Port

 More than 4,500 migrants have crossed the English Channel by small boat so far this year, with more than 3,000 people arriving in March alone, Home Office figures showed

 March has seen 3,075 migrants arrive on British soil – more than the total number of people who made the journey in January, February, March and April combined last year, and over triple the 831 who arrived in the entirety of March in 2021

The total number of migrants to make the treacherous trip across the Channel this year now stands at 4,559 across 146 boats – a level that was not reached until June in 2021

Yet the weather hasn’t put people off flocking to the country. 

Monday saw the second highest number of people arrive in the UK by small boat so far this year – with 395 people intercepted or rescued by British authorities.

The most recent arrivals, which included a number of women and children, arrived in Dover, Kent, with blue blankets wrapped around their shoulders and heads after battling cold and wet conditions at sea.     

A little girl with no shoes was among the dozens of migrants arriving in the UK by small boat on Monday afternoon after battling poor weather conditions in the Channel.  

Yesterday’s arrivals, which included a number of women and children, could be seen setting foot in Dover, Kent with blue blankets wrapped around their shoulders and heads after battling cold and wet conditions at sea.

The first group of around 20 people was escorted into the port on board an RNLI vessel before being led along the gangway for processing – among them at least seven small children in orange life-jackets were supported by UK officials.

A second group of around 10 migrants arrived a short while later on a black Border Force rib.

Border Force cutter Hunter arrived in Dover shortly after 3pm carrying approximately 15 people, while Border Force cutter Seeker escorted a similar sized group to shore a few minutes later.  

The busiest day this year was March 15, which saw 405 people reach the UK in 12 boats.  

The weather hasn’t put people off flocking to the country. Monday saw the second highest number of people arrive in the UK by small boat so far this year – with 395 people intercepted or rescued by British authorities. Pictured: Border Force staff escort new arrivals on Monday

The busiest day this year was March 15 which saw 405 people reach the UK in 12 boats. Pictured: Migrants wearing face masks and wrapped in blankets step foot on British soil

Newly arrived migrants stand by a bus, talking with a man wearing a hi-vis jacket that reads ‘immigration enforcement’

A record 28,395 migrants reached the UK illegally last year by taking small boats across the Channel, a 200 per cent increase on 2020’s tally

French authorities also prevented 101 people from reaching the UK.  

A total of 28,381 migrants crossed the Dover Strait last year – significantly higher than the 8,410 who arrived in 2020.

If migrants keep coming at the same rate this year as they have in the first three months of 2022, this year’s total number is set to increase dramatically. 

Minister for Justice and Tackling Illegal Migration, Tom Pursglove MP, said: ‘The rise in dangerous Channel crossings is unacceptable.

‘Not only are they an overt abuse of our immigration laws but they also impact on the UK taxpayer, risk lives and our ability to help refugees come to the UK via safe and legal routes. Rightly, the British public has had enough.

‘Through our Nationality and Borders Bill, we’re cracking down on people smugglers and fixing the broken system by making it a criminal offence to knowingly arrive in the UK illegally and introducing a maximum sentence of life imprisonment for those who facilitate illegal entry into our country.’ 

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