Border Force accused of ‘conspiring’ with French to facilitate Channel crossings | Politics | News

Border Force is under increasing pressure to change tactics across the Channel after being accused of “conspiring” with the French to “facilitate mass illegal immigration”. Anger is mounting against British ships still “providing taxi services” after years of small boat transit.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp has increasingly said Paris should start “forcibly stopping” boats leaving French shores. And he criticized UK officials after a shocking audio clip revealed the level of cooperation between the British and French across the Channel. The French naval ship contacted its British counterpart, believed to be a Border Force Volunteer, during a crossing on Saturday and said: “Good morning, I’m just calling to give you information from a boat.

“There are about 25 people on board. About 90% have life jackets and buoyancy, and integrity is good.”

Thereupon, an officer on the British ship replied: “We will take action as soon as possible, we will allow them to go a little further so as not to cross the line during the rescue.”

More than 36,000 migrants have crossed the Channel so far this year, putting huge pressure on ministers after repeated promises to “crush the gangs”.

France decided to start stopping migrant boats at sea at the beginning of this year.

But the French have yet to introduce the new doctrine, although many in Whitehall believe it will come into force in the summer.

Sources within the government have repeatedly expressed disappointment at the lack of action.

And Mr Philip criticized the Border Force’s role in the crisis. He said: “It is outrageous that Border Force and French authorities conspired together to facilitate mass illegal immigration.

“The French should not take these boats into UK waters and the Border Force should not act as a taxi service for illegal immigrants.

“To add insult to injury, the French are even recycling life jackets for the next group of illegal immigrants to use. The French must keep their word and start forcibly stopping these boats near the French coast.”

“The UK Government must urgently embrace Conservative plans and leave the ECHR [European Convention on Human Rights]This will allow all illegal immigrants to be deported within a week of their arrival. Very soon the crossings would stop.

“But Labor is too weak to do that and so this year has been the worst year in history for illegal Channel crossings.”

Anger is also growing in northern France, as an ally of French interior minister Bruno Retailleau claims French police are allowing migrants to cross the Channel freely.

Xavier Bertrand, president of the Hauts-de-France region, claimed that Paris was “protecting the border” on behalf of England and said that England was as much responsible for the small boat crisis as human smugglers.

Although Britain agreed to give more than £660 million to stop migrants leaving its shores, Mr Bertrand claimed “we almost had to beg them to give us part of the check they owed us”.

In new provocative comments, the French politician said: “We must say to the Border Force: ‘Stay at home this week, we don’t want to see you and we will let everyone through.

“Then you’ll see what happens. The British will be scared, and in two days they’ll come to the table with proposals to change things. Right now, we’re almost having to beg them to give us part of the check they owe us just for guarding the border on their behalf. That’s enough.”

“Let the immigrants pass. My proposal is not very wise. But it’s the only thing that could change things.”

Mr Bertrand also claimed France was indifferent to the fact that “people are dying every week”, adding: “Very clearly, we know who is really responsible: the smugglers, the criminals who exploit these networks.

“The second person responsible is the British. Because if they didn’t have jobs in Britain, these deaths wouldn’t happen, hundreds of people wouldn’t try to cross the road every week.”

Mr Bertrand said he held Britain, along with people smugglers, responsible for the deaths across the Channel because of Britain’s “hypocrisy” over its handling of the black market economy.

“The British say, ‘now we will establish a legal immigration channel. This means we will accept them legally and send them back to France.'”

A Ministry of Internal Affairs spokesman said: “Although it has been a long-standing position that we do not comment on operational matters, these are completely unfounded allegations.