225 migrants cross Channel in three boats as arrivals surge

A small boat carrying 128 people set a new record for Channel crossings as 225 migrants reached the United Kingdom in three boats on Friday. The previous high for a single vessel was 125.

Home Office data updated on 12 July showed 81 people came across in one boat on 9 July and 249 in four boats on 8 July. The same data set recorded no arrivals on 5, 6, 7 or 11 July, while the weekly summary for the week ending 5 July showed 63 migrants arriving in one boat and 25 people prevented in three separate events. The figures are provisional operational data and can change.

Small boats are vessels used to cross the Channel without permission, most commonly RHIBs, dinghies and kayaks. Officials linked the surge to a new deal with France aimed at strengthening enforcement on beaches and stopping perilous journeys before boats reach open water.

More than 12,000 people have reached the UK in small boats so far this year, a fall of 44% on the same period last year. The Migration Observatory estimates that around 36,000 people arrived by small boat in the year ending 31 May 2026, after 41,000 in 2025, the second-highest year on record after 2022. Between 2018 and 2025, six nationalities, Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq, Albania, Syria and Eritrea, accounted for 65% of crossings.

The Migration Observatory estimates that 24 people died trying to cross the Channel by small boat in 2025, and about 7,500 people who had arrived by small boat had been returned from the UK by the end of 2025, roughly 4% of all arrivals since 2018.