People smuggling gangs operating across the English Channel have been forced to cut their prices to record lows as tougher enforcement measures hit their operations, MPs on the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee were told.
Trafficking cartels have halved their charges from up to €3,000 (£2,500) last year to between €1,000 (£840) and €2,000 (£1,700), according to Duncan Capps, the Home Office’s Border Security Commander.
Gangs adapt as arrests and seizures increase
Mr Capps revealed that the gangs are having to adapt their business model as law enforcement agencies step up arrests and seize boats and equipment. Heavy beach patrols by French police mean migrants now face an average of seven failed attempts before successfully launching a boat, compared to just three previously.
However, under current French protocol, migrants stopped on beaches are not detained, leaving them free to attempt the crossing again. The backlog has caused the number of migrants camping along the northern French coastline to surge to nearly 4,000 - double the usual figure. The camps are predominantly filled with single men from Eritrea, Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia, and Afghanistan.
Arrivals down 43% despite beach backlog
Despite the backlog on the beaches, overall small-boat arrivals to the UK are down 43% compared with the same period last year, at just under 21,000. Addressing the committee, Mr Capps outlined the strategy to dismantle the trade.
"There is a moment with this from a criminal perspective where it stops being particularly viable. Part of our strategy is to drive it to a point where it is not worth them doing this because the cost of getting the boat, the engine, the risk of them being interdicted and jailed, is so much that actually they stop being in this business," he said.
New tactics and warnings of mass casualties
National Crime Agency (NCA) director general of operations, Rob Jones, added that the drop in crossings proves the gang bosses' business model is "starting to shake," with officers actively working to intercept any new tactics. However, border officials warned of dangerous new developments, including gangs launching from Normandy - some 60 nautical miles from the UK coast - and using "mega-dinghies" packed with up to 230 people.
"I think the things that worry me most this year have been the increasing size of the boat and the increasing occupancy. You’ll have seen this year we had a boat with 230 people in it. Extraordinary," Mr Capps warned, reported The Telegraph.
"It ought to be put on record that it is only a matter of time until we have a mass casualty event in the Channel. It is extraordinary that has not happened so far."
The Channel remains one of the world's deadliest migration routes. Over 50 people died attempting the crossing in 2024, following the loss of at least 30 lives in November 2021 when a crowded dinghy capsized off the French coast.
