140 Migrants Rescued in Single Dinghy in English Channel
Around 140 migrants on an inflatable dinghy, departing from the Normandy coast on Saturday night, requested assistance in UK waters. They were subsequently rescued by two RNLI boats and the French coastguard, before being brought ashore in the UK.
This recent rescue follows discussions between Prime Minister Andy Burnham and French President Emmanuel Macron regarding the scaling up of efforts to reduce small boat crossings. Over the weekend, protests occurred near landing ports in Portsmouth and Dover, due to the increasing number of small boats arriving.
In August, a single dinghy carrying a record 230 people successfully crossed the Channel. The latest dinghy, launching from the Bay of the Seine, was shadowed by French rescue boats for approximately 10 hours before reaching UK waters at lunchtime, where it was met by lifeboats from Bembridge and Yarmouth.
French authorities noted that it is unusual for such a boat to depart from Normandy—typically 170 miles away from the usual launch points near Calais—making the crossing significantly longer.
A Home Office spokesperson stated:
"This government is bearing down on dangerous small boat crossings and restoring control at our border... We have signed a payment-by-results deal with the French to put 40% more boots on the ground on French beaches."
While the number of boat crossings has dropped in recent months, smugglers appear to be employing larger vessels, known as "mega dinghies," and loading them with even more migrants.