According to official figures, 960 people made the perilous crossing aboard 20 boats, bringing the total number of crossings since the beginning of the year to more than 26,000.
By Friday, 221 people had reached Britain after crossing the English Channel in makeshift boats in one of the busiest straits in the world.
The number of these crossings is on course to break the record in 2021, when 28,500 people arrived on British soil. Such crossings have multiplied since 2018 in light of the increasing closure of the French port of Calais and the Channel Tunnel.
A recent British parliamentary report estimated the total could reach 60,000 this year despite repeated promises by the British Conservative government, which has made the issue a priority since Brexit, to pay millions to France and then help it strengthen the surveillance of the coasts. the measures to strengthen the reception of migrants.
London has struck a highly controversial deal with Rwanda to send asylum seekers who arrive on British soil by such boats to the East African country.
Although none of these expulsions have yet taken place – a first flight planned for June was canceled following a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) – the candidates to succeed Boris Johnson, both Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, have pledged to continue this policy .
.