At least 21 asylum seekers arrived in Samphire Hoe on Tuesday, prompting Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to order an urgent review into the uncontrolled landings. The Home Secretary broke her silence after Border Force failed to stop a second migrant dinghy from reaching Kent in 24 hours.
Urgent review ordered
Ms Mahmood conceded: "This was not acceptable. Our improved monitoring has led to uncontrolled crossings becoming incredibly rare. But even one is one too many. That is why I have ordered an urgent review by the Border Security Command into how this happened, and what must be done to ensure it doesn't happen again."
She added: "The new tactics adopted by the smugglers, like launches from much further west in France, are a reminder of two things. Firstly, these gangs have no regard for human life. They are putting people on increasingly long and dangerous crossings. Secondly, our efforts are having an impact. We are making it much harder for gangs to launch vessels, forcing them to change their approach, and as a result we are significantly reducing the numbers coming here by small boat."
At least five migrants were detected at The Warren, a rocky stretch of coast near Folkestone, on Monday. The crossings were the first unauthorised landings in a year, igniting a fresh crisis for Ms Mahmood as Labour tries to convince voters the borders are secure.
Criticism from opposition
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: "Yesterday was a day of despair for the Labour Government. Our border security has descended into chaos with illegal immigrants crossing at will over ever larger distances and in ever larger boats."
He continued: "This latest fiasco shows that the French are not even trying to stop the illegal immigrants' boats in French waters, instead they are escorting them here. What's more, there have been two uncontrolled migrant landings in a week. It is a complete free for all – the Labour Government have no idea who is coming into the country."
Mr Philp added: "The only way to stop Channel crossings is to deport anyone who arrives illegally to their home country or a safe third country. That's the only way we can end this madness."
Government response
A government spokesperson said: "Border Security Command officers alongside Kent police have been responding to an incident in Dover. Twenty-one individuals have already been detained under a swift enforcement response. There is a thorough investigation ongoing, and it would be inappropriate to comment further."
Some 1,200 migrants are feared to have reached the UK this week alone, with 150 arriving on Monday, 154 on Tuesday and a staggering 900 attempting the crossing on Wednesday, according to GB News.
Immigration chiefs faced fury on Tuesday night after plotting to bring migrants into Gosport, following chaotic scenes in Portsmouth earlier this month. But officials decided not to bring the migrants ashore there, as hundreds of protesters gathered in the naval town. The asylum seekers were eventually taken to Dover.
The migrant dinghy spent a staggering 33 hours at sea before being intercepted south of Portsmouth. Four French lifeboats and the tugboat Abeille Liberté (Liberty Bee), along with a French Navy search-and-rescue helicopter, were scrambled when the 12m (40ft) migrant dinghy left Port-en-Bessin, north of Bayeux, just before 10am on Monday.
The French coastguard said the migrants refused help as they were "determined to take all risks to reach the United Kingdom". Uncontrolled landings are considered rare. There has only been one other instance recorded by the Home Office since the start of 2023, figures show. This took place on September 6, 2025, when a boat travelled across the English Channel without being intercepted and landed near Deal on the Kent coast.
A fisherman who witnessed the second landing on Tuesday said it was "a truly staggering situation". He said fishermen had issued alerts about the boat when they saw it in the Channel, adding: "This is a total embarrassment for the Home Office. I could not believe what I saw. The Border Force soon turned up when they realised. The migrants had been detained. It makes you wonder, why did these migrants want to land directly on the shore? How can it be allowed to happen? There was a Coastguard and Border Force plane and drone in the air for a lot of yesterday."
Labour's migrant mayhem continued on Wednesday, as hundreds crossed the Channel to reach Britain. Dinghies were escorted throughout the day by French vessels, before they were handed over to UK ships at the median line in the English Channel.
A migrant was found dead on a beach in northern France on Wednesday, French authorities have said. A spokesperson for the Pas-de-Calais prefecture said: "The lifeless body of a man, who appeared to be of African origin, was discovered this morning on the Neufchatel-Hardelot beach. An investigation has been launched by the Boulogne-sur-Mer public prosecutor's office."
Ms Mahmood was facing growing pressure to guarantee migrants detected south of Portsmouth – which happens if smugglers launch dinghies from Normandy – are taken to Dover, Kent, rather than other coastal towns. It comes after immigration chiefs had to abandon plans to take dozens of asylum seekers to Gosport, Hants, after hundreds of protesters descended on the area. They blocked roads, preventing some emergency vehicles from getting through the port.
Reform's Zia Yusuf declared: "Labour's failure to fix our borders has turned our southern coastline into an open invasion route. These dinghies have no business landing in Hampshire or Dover. The only option is to turn them around in the Channel and send them straight back to France. Not one illegal migrant should ever set foot on British soil."
Reform has vowed to use the Royal Navy to stop Channel migrant crossings - and take asylum seekers back to France. It would set up a joint military command with units from the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, RAF and British Army as well as a surveillance unit. The navy would intercept any unauthorised boats and detain their occupants, giving them water, food and a medical assessment before returning them to France or Belgium under escort on navy vessels, it said. Reform said the navy's River-class offshore patrol vessels would be used for the operations. The ships' current responsibilities include monitoring Russian naval activity around British waters.
Some 17,480 migrants have arrived after crossing the Channel by boat so far this year, including 5,011 since Andy Burnham became Prime Minister. The total so far for 2026 is down 46% on the same point last year.
