France admits there's 'no limit' to mega dinghy migrants while French police stand and watch boats launch
The French lifeboat service has warned that there is no limit to the number of migrants boarding 'mega dinghies' for Channel crossings. Critics, including the Shadow Home Secretary, have condemned the French authorities for failing to intervene as these vessels launch.
Why it matters
The issue of illegal migration across the English Channel remains a highly contentious political topic involving border security and international relations between the UK and France.
There is "no limit" to the number of migrants who pile onto infamous "mega dinghies", the French lifeboat service has warned after yesterday's record-breaking crossing .
France and Britain alike were left shocked on Monday morning after GB News revealed a 230-strong "small" boat had crossed the Channel.
The vessel carried more people than a Boeing 737 and was larger than a London bus.
Each passenger is believed to cost taxpayers as much as £106,000 in immediate pressures alone, meaning the "mega dinghy" could leave the Home Office with a near-£25million bill.
Jean-Marc Lamblin, the director of the SNSM - France's equivalent to the RNLI - said: "For the past three months, we've been seeing more and more 15-metre boats.
"We recently passed the record of 150. We didn't think there could be more, but there really seems to be no limit anymore."
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