In 2022, 45,755 men, women and children crossed the Channel in small boats to reach the UK, most of whom then claimed asylum. Nearly 3,000 people have already made the crossing this year, with official estimates expecting more than 80,000 this year.
Rishi Sunak has promised to end the small boats once and for all, by introducing the illegal immigration bill. Critics including former Tory ministers have claimed it is doomed to be halted by challenges in the European court of human rights and will be used as an issue to attack Labour in a general election campaign.
