Keir Starmer's migrant deal with France branded 'national humiliation'

Labour's one-in, one-out migrant deal with France has been branded a "national humiliation" by the Tories. Sixteen more people who entered the UK illegally have been returned to France this week, taking the number deported under the deal to 42, the Home Office said.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: "For every immigrant we have returned to France, an average of 372 have come to the UK. This is a gimmick, it is not a deterrent, and quite frankly, it is an embarrassment. This is a national humiliation.

"Rapists, gang members, and foreign offenders are slipping through while the Government sits on its hands. British people didn't vote for an open border experiment.

"The Conservative borders plan is ready. Leave the ECHR [European Convention on Human Rights], remove all illegal immigrants within a week of arrival, end the merry-go-round of appeals - then the crossings will stop. But Keir Starmer doesn't have the backbone to do this, and Reform are a one-man band with no detailed plans. Only the Conservatives will deliver stronger borders."

More flights are expected to take place in the coming days and week as part of the deal with France.

It is understood the number of migrants arriving under the treaty now stands at 23.

A total of 369 people crossed the English Channel in seven boats on Saturday, bringing the total for the year so far to 36,734, according to analysis of Home Office figures showed.

The total is 82 short of the total for the entire of 2024, which was 36,816.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: "For many years, illegal migrants entered our country with no consequence.

"This is the largest return flight under our historic deal with the French.

"And it sends a warning to those considering entering this country illegally: if you come here by small boat, you can be sent back.

"This is just the beginning - I will scale up these removals to France.

"And I will do whatever it takes to secure our borders."

The "one-in, one-out" returns deal struck between Emmanuel Macron and Sir Keir Starmer earlier this year is aimed at creating a disincentive for the dangerous Channel crossing.

Border security chief Martin Hewitt this week told MPs that the number of arrivals by small boat to the UK is "frustrating" but insisted work to stop the smuggling route was "always going to take time".