Illegal crossings of the English Channel by small boats filled with illegal immigrants have resumed just days after Prime Minister Andy Burnham took office.
| PULSE POINTS |
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: Illegal boat migrant crossings of the English Channel have resumed under new British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, after a brief lull in the final days of Sir Keir Starmer’s premiership. 📺 DETAIL: On Wednesday, multiple small boats carrying illegal immigrants crossed the English Channel and arrived in Dover, Kent, on the southern coast of England. The boats had set off from northern France. Since the Labour Party came to power in July 2024 under former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, over 77,000 migrants have crossed the Channel. Wednesday’s crossings are the first under Prime Minister Andy Burnham, following an 11-day pause in arrivals. There have been 12,469 illegal Channel crossings so far this year, according to Home Office data. Prime Minister Andy Burnham entered 10 Downing Street, the Prime Minister’s official residence, on Monday after he won a parliamentary by-election (special election) to re-enter the House of Commons and ran uncontested for Labour leader. 🎯 IMPACT: The continuation of illegal Channel crossings shows the new Prime Minister has inherited unresolved problems at the border. The restarting of illegal crossings creates immediate pressure on Burnham. Earlier this month, it was reported that the new premier could water down Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s pending immigration restrictios to appease hard-left Labour Members of Parliament (MPs). Immigration control and reduction remains one of the top priorities of the British public. As such, the new Prime Minister’s handling of small boats is likely to be treated as a proxy for his broader approach to immigration, and whether it differs from the approach of his predecessor. |
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