A French warship has appeared to fire “17 live rounds” behind the shadow home secretary while he carried out interviews on a boat in the Channel.
Chris Philp claimed a French naval officer fired what “felt like warning shots or attempted intimidation” from the Flamant-class patrol vessel.
Incident during BBC interview
In a video shared by the Conservative frontbencher on X, noise which sounds like gunshots could be heard as the ship passed by while he was being interviewed by the BBC. French authorities have been contacted for comment.
In a statement, Mr Philp accused France of “doing little” to stop illegal journeys across the Channel and “seemingly now intimidating anyone who tries to expose it”.
“The French warship fired 17 live rounds behind us as it was at its closest point to us. There was no warning at all. It felt like these were warning shots and our skipper told me he had never seen anything like this in years sailing in the Channel,” he said.
Witness accounts
BBC journalist Michael Keohan said it was a “strange moment”, with the French vessel being around 300 metres away and firing in “close proximity”.
A reporter from the Times, who was also on the vessel, has described seeing a French navy officer standing at the stern of the ship firing a handgun into the water, aiming away from the Conservative shadow minister. The captain of the fishing boat, Matt Coker, told them he had “never seen anything like it before”.
Political context
The incident comes as the Prime Minister insisted the Government’s plan to tackle small boat crossings in the Channel was “working”. Almost 900 migrants have crossed to the UK from France since Andy Burnham took over No 10 last Monday, including one “mega dinghy” carrying 165 people on Thursday.
The Prime Minister admitted there is “more to do” but insisted the Government’s plan to tackle migrant crossings is working.
Speaking to reporters on a visit to Derby on Tuesday, Mr Burnham said: “The Home Secretary (Shabana Mahmood) has brought forward a very rigorous plan in relation to this, and let’s remember, the numbers can fluctuate but overall boat crossings are down, down quite significantly year on year. So that does suggest that the plan is working.”
Asked if he recognised that the small boats may represent a “threat to national security”, Mr Burnham said he wanted “all relevant and necessary checks” to be completed. He said: “There have to be rigorous checks so that people are not put through into a situation where they are out without the relevant safeguards, and absolutely, I can give you a commitment that that is the clear instruction that I am giving. That all relevant and necessary checks must be done.
“It’s about getting a grip on the entire situation. I raised this repeatedly through the Makerfield by-election. The public wants to see control being exerted, and while we’ve made progress, there is more to do, and I recognise that completely. But the trend is down, and the number of people being removed is up, so the figures are pointing in a better direction. But there is much more to do.”
Data on Channel crossings
Press Association analysis of Government data shows 77,183 migrants arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel during Sir Keir Starmer’s premiership from Labour’s election victory in July 2024. According to recent Home Office figures, 13,007 arrivals have been recorded this year. This is 45% lower than the number recorded by this time last year and down 18% on the same period in 2024.
