UK and France extend ‘one in, one out’ small boats pilot scheme until October | Immigration and asylum
The Home Office is expanding a controversial plan to stop asylum seekers crossing the English Channel in small boats, the Guardian has learned.
British prime minister Keir Starmer and French president Emmanuel Macron signed a deal known as “one in, one out” last July, which they praised as “groundbreaking”.
According to the terms of the agreement, an asylum seeker who came to England on a small boat is forcibly sent back to France, and in return, another asylum seeker who is in France and has not tried to cross the Channel is legally brought to England.
The two leaders initially agreed that the plan would be on a pilot basis and that it would end on June 11. However, according to Ministry of Internal Affairs sources, the two countries agreed to extend the plan until October 1.
The aim of the plan is to deter small boat crossings and stop gangs involved in human trafficking. Thousands of asylum seekers have continued to cross the Channel in small boats since the agreement was signed, and smugglers have adapted their business model, landing more ships from Belgium and offering more expensive journeys to Britain in trucks to evade police on the French coast.
However, the number of people crossing the Channel so far this year is down by around a third compared to the same period last year, although this is thought to be partly due to weather conditions. Many windy days in recent months have made crossings very dangerous.
Within the scope of the program, as of April 28, 605 people returned to France and 581 people came to England.
Asylum seekers expressed their sadness at the news that the program would be extended.
One person who was sent back to France after arriving in the UK on a small boat said: “I’m very sorry to hear this news. It’s really sad. Extending this decision will not stop refugees coming. As we see, small boats continue.”
A second asylum seeker who was detained for a “one-on-one out” and later released while his asylum claim was processed in the UK said asylum seekers suffered both in UK detention centers and after being sent back to France.
They said: “Many people sent back to France have disappeared and no one knows their whereabouts.
“Many were fingerprinted in Bulgaria, which does not treat asylum seekers well. They disappeared because they were afraid of being sent back there. One in, one out is very bad, but I fear the next UK government bill to stop asylum seekers trying to find safety in the UK will be even worse.”
A Home Office spokesman said: “Under our repatriation agreement with France, we have deported more than 600 illegal immigrants from British territory. This contributes to a 31% increase in the number of illegal immigrants returned since July 2024, of around 60,000 on the previous 19 months.”
“This is just one part of our wider reforms to tackle the incentives that attract illegal immigrants to the UK and speed up the return of those who have no right to be here.”
