UK to spend extra £100 million to curb channel crossings

The UK government will spend an additional £100 million on new measures to deter small boat crossings across the Channel, including funding the “one in, one out” returns agreement with France, the Home Office has announced.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper unveiled the move on August 3 as part of a series of rapid-fire immigration policy pledges. The funds will be used to recruit up to 300 new National Crime Agency officers and invest in advanced technology and equipment aimed at disrupting people-smuggling networks, Caliber.Az reports via The Guardian. 

“For seven years, successive governments have tried and failed to stop people crossing the Channel in small boats,” Cooper said. “Alongside our new agreements with France, this will help us drive forward our plan for change commitments to protect the UK’s border security and restore order to our immigration system.”

The announcement comes as record numbers of migrants continue to make the dangerous journey to the UK. More than 25,000 people have arrived in the country via small boats in 2025 so far – the highest ever recorded at this point in the year.

Tensions over asylum accommodation have escalated, with protests erupting at several hotels across England. On August 2, nine people were arrested in Islington, north London, after scuffles broke out between protesters and counter-protesters outside the Thistle City Barbican hotel, where asylum seekers are being housed.

The following day, more than 100 people – many women wearing pink T-shirts – gathered outside the Britannia International hotel in Canary Wharf after reports that asylum seekers had arrived overnight. Social media footage showed men being escorted into the building in the early hours. Later, masked men appeared outside the hotel as chants of “send them home” rang out. Police said flares were set off and officers had to intervene.

According to the Metropolitan Police, some individuals were “harassing occupants and staff” and attempting to “breach the fencing and access the hotel”. One man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker after an officer was pushed.

Fresh protests also broke out on July 31 outside a hotel in Epping, Essex. The demonstration followed the arrest of an Ethiopian asylum seeker accused of sexually assaulting a local girl.

The government’s new agreement with France, signed last month, allows for the reciprocal transfer of asylum seekers. Under the “one in, one out” policy, the UK will return individuals to France in exchange for others with established ties to Britain. However, critics say the agreement’s scale and timeline are unclear, and that the weekly cap of 50 exchanges is unlikely to serve as a meaningful deterrent.

In a separate development, researchers at the University of Oxford’s Centre on Migration, Policy and Society (Compas) have found that the UK has spent £20 billion over the past decade on schemes aimed at housing and supporting migrants, but with little investment in integration efforts.

“While there have been very high levels of overspend on asylum hotels, there has not been equivalent investment on cohesion and integration, which could help mitigate some of the pressures on local communities,” said Jacqueline Broadhead, a senior researcher at Compas.

The researchers found that £10 billion of the total was spent on asylum accommodation, with the remaining funds dispersed across 26 different government initiatives between 2014 and 2024. They argue that future spending should prioritise long-term community engagement.

On August 2, the government also introduced a proposed new criminal offence under its border security, asylum and immigration bill. The offence would target advertisements for illegal small boat crossings, giving police and agencies greater powers to crack down on smuggling networks. Assisting illegal immigration is already a crime, but officials believe the specific offence will strengthen enforcement.

Cooper also announced plans for a fast-track asylum processing scheme to reduce the growing backlog, with a goal of resolving cases within weeks. Tens of thousands of applicants have been waiting over a year for an initial decision. Currently, over 70% of asylum seekers are eventually granted the right to remain in the UK.

The Conservative Party dismissed Cooper’s new plans, accusing Labour of political posturing. Kemi Badenoch, the opposition leader, told Sky News that Labour should reinstate Boris Johnson’s scrapped £700 million plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda and close the hotel in Epping.

“What we need is a third-country deterrent so that people can be processed elsewhere,” she said. “This is a desperate grab for headlines, which will make no real difference.”

By Sabina Mammadli