The number of migrants that have crossed the Channel in small boats is at its highest ever level for the first four months of the year.

Some 7,167 people have arrived on UK shores after travelling by small boat from the continent between 1 January to 27 April, with 902 entering just this past week

This compares to 5,745 for the same period last year. The previous record in 2022 was 6,691.

The figures come after Rishi Sunak said that migrants travelling to Ireland after arriving in the UK on small boats is a sign the Rwanda scheme is already working as a deterrent.

“People are worried about coming here and that demonstrates exactly what I’m saying,” he told Sky News.

“If people come to our country illegally, but know that they won’t be able to stay there, they are much less likely to come, and that’s why the Rwanda scheme is so important.”

Stopping the boats was one of the government’s five priorities set out by the prime minister after he took office in 2023.

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