UK says French police stop more Channel small boats after border deal funding

LONDON - French police tactics are stopping more small boats before they complete English Channel crossings to Britain, the UK Home Office told the BBC.

Officials credited French authorities with intercepting 185 potential crossings involving 4,300 migrants across four separate summer weeks, and with stopping 12 boats at sea using new techniques. Footage released by French police shows officers racing across a beach to stop a launch, then slashing an abandoned inflatable lengthways with a knife.

Since a UK-France border security deal three months ago that added funding for northern France, the Home Office said 61 percent of small boats have been intercepted, up five percentage points from last year. The April deal includes 501 million pounds over three years for French operations and 161 million pounds for new approaches.

Channel crossings are down about 40 percent compared with last year, yet thousands still arrive. Between Jan. 1 and Aug. 19, 2026, some 15,897 people crossed by small boat, down 43 percent from the same period a year earlier. Boats that arrived over the prior 12 months carried an average of 68 people, more than double the 2021 average, as smugglers shifted to larger craft when equipment was seized.

Charlie Eastaugh of the Border Security Command told the BBC the French prevented all three attempted crossings on one recent Thursday, two at sea and one on land. Conservatives called the government announcement a joke and said preventions were down by half over the past year. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp argued only a stronger deterrent will stop people who expect to stay, claim asylum, and receive housing support.

Nearly all small-boat arrivals claim asylum and may remain while cases are heard. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the UK-France deal is already having a real impact. Both governments warn smuggling gangs keep adapting.