In 2023, nearly 30,000 undocumented migrants reached the English coast by crossing the Channel in makeshift boats, marking a significant decline from the record-breaking figures of 2022.
The focus on these numbers is intense in the UK. Successive Conservative governments have pledged to "take back control of borders" following Brexit, with immigration quickly becoming a key issue for the upcoming 2024 parliamentary election campaign.
Specifically, 29,437 migrants made the crossing in 2023, compared to 45,774 in 2022, according to data from the UK Home Office. However, the 2023 figure still stands as the second-highest ever recorded, topping 2021's count of 28,526.
Around 20% of those arriving on English shores in 2023 were from Afghanistan, based on Home Office data up until 29 November. They were followed by Iranians, who made up approximately 12% of crossings, then Turks (11%), Eritreans (9%) and Iraqis (9%).
Interestingly, the number of Albanian migrants, who were among the most numerous to make the crossing in 2022 (12,658), fell by more than 90%. An agreement between the UK and Albania aimed to prevent Albanians travelling to the UK irregularly. The UK government has repeatedly praised the success of this agreement, along with a similar one made with France.
'Most severe legislation ever'
In March, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak – who vowed to halt these Channel crossings – and French President Emmanuel Macron established an agreement requiring over €500 million from London over three years to bolster surveillance on French beaches and combat smuggling gangs.
The Conservatives, who enacted very restrictive asylum laws, still plan to deport migrants to Rwanda who entered the UK irregularly.
While the Supreme Court stalled this project, labelling it "unlawful", Sunak secured a new deal with Rwanda. He declared to MPs in December that the new project is "the most severe legislation ever presented to Parliament on immigration."
