Request from France: Frontex should also go to the English Channel

Due to the increasing number of immigrants trying to come to the UK via the English Channel, France is demanding the expansion of Frontex. EU border guards must also be active on the northern borders.

French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin has demanded that the EU’s border protection agency Frontex also be active on the EU’s northern border. In the coastal city of Calais, Darmanin said he called Frontex himself and asked her to also take care of northern Europe, especially the strait between France and Great Britain.

In recent years, many refugees and migrants have attempted to reach England in boats across the English Channel. Due to the large volume of traffic in the strait, strong currents and cold temperatures, crossing is associated with numerous risks. However, immigrants from France make the dangerous crossing again and again. They often come from refugee camps, and many of them use the services of people smugglers.

France and Great Britain want to work together

Darmanin welcomed the agreement between Britain and France last week, according to which London wants to support Paris with about 63 million euros in curbing illegal immigration. France has promised to deploy more security forces along the coast.

Last year, according to the French authorities, more than 9,500 people attempted to cross the English Channel, more than four times as many as in 2019. Six people died and three are missing.

British authorities expect further increases

This year, the number of people who managed to cross the strait in small boats from the continent to England is already higher than in the whole of last year. According to figures from Britain’s Home Office, at least 8,452 migrants had arrived on the English coast by this week. Last Monday alone, 430 people illegally crossed the English Channel towards Great Britain in the space of 24 hours.

According to a media report, the British authorities expect several thousand immigrants this year. According to The Times, the number could rise to about 22,000 during the year. Quoting sources in the border authorities, it is said that the calculation corresponds to the expectations of the authorities.

Patel plans stricter asylum law

British Home Secretary Priti Patel has announced that in the long run, asylum seekers who enter the country via illegal routes will be given fewer rights than others. Looking at other countries, the number of asylum seekers in the UK is relatively low: in Germany, more than 100,000 asylum applications were made for the first time in 2020, and in the UK about 32,000 people applied for asylum in the twelve months to March 2021.