Thank you for emailing me about the Home Secretary and illegal channel crossings.
I entirely agree with you that that the number of small boat crossings is unacceptable. The Home Secretary has said that we must make this route unviable in order to secure a long-term solution.
I know many of my constituents have felt that if an individual illegally enters the UK via a safe country where they could have claimed asylum, they are not seeking refuge from imminent peril but are picking the UK as a preferred destination over others. Therefore, for the first time, whether an individual has entered the UK legally or illegally will have an impact on how their asylum claim progresses, and on their status in the UK if that claim is successful. Those who succeed with claims having entered illegally will receive a new temporary protection status rather than an automatic right to settle, will be regularly reassessed for removal from the UK, will have limited family reunion rights and will have no recourse to public funds except in cases of destitution.
As you may also be aware, a new agreement has been reached between the UK and France to tackle this issue. I particularly welcome the doubling of French police officers patrolling French beaches as a result of this agreement. This will strengthen the patrolling of the 150-kilometre stretch of coastline regularly targeted by people-smuggling networks. It will also enable a quicker response to suspicious activity, stopping migrants leaving France in the first place.
In addition, enhanced surveillance technology including drones, radar equipment, optronic binoculars, and fixed cameras will allow the French police to be more efficient in their searches and in turn ensure officers are deployed to the right place at the right time to stop these dangerous and unnecessary crossings. It is also promising that both the UK and French governments are thinking ahead and boosting border security at ports in Northern and Western France to make sure that the illegal migration threat does not shift towards freight traffic.
I would like to reassure you that if these small boats arrive on our shores, the occupants do not automatically receive the right to remain in the UK. I agree that France is a safe country with an established asylum system. Those coming across the Channel should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach.
The Home Secretary’s comments about videos on social media should be understood in this context. People who promote illegal channel crossings as glamorous and advertise smuggling routes to potential migrants may be breaking the law as they are inciting an illegal act. News about illegal channel crossings is, of course, completely legitimate social media content and there is no suggestion that posts critical of the Government’s policies should be removed.
Thank you again for contacting me.