Paris (Parliament Politics Magazine) – French police chief Marc Alegre says officers face violent migrant crossings, lack training, resources, and coordination to tackle the Channel crisis.
As reported by The Telegraph, Marc Alegre said France struggles to halt migrant crossings as smuggling gangs use extreme violence.
What did Marc Alegre say about French police struggling with migrant crossings?
Marc Alegre, representing Calais and Dunkirk officers, said police and gendarmes were uncoordinated, undertrained, short-staffed, and misusing British funds.
His Unité police union called for specialised forces to tackle people-smuggling and curb the unprecedented number of migrant small-boat crossings this year.
Mr Alegre’s remarks came as the Channel saw 1,097 migrant crossings last week in 17 boats, close to the record 1,195 on May 31. The total now exceeds 30,000, a 36% increase from last year and the highest since the first arrivals in 2018.
He warned that officers face major risks as migrants, urged by smugglers, attack with petrol bombs, stones, burning life jackets, and damaged vehicles.
Police are facing shortages of tear gas, grenades, and vehicles amid continuous clashes with migrants.
Mr Alegre said,
“Police are pelted with stones practically every night. We’re short of cars because they’re vandalised by migrants, who the smugglers and traffickers order to throw stones at us to slow us down.”
He stated,
“I have colleagues who are regularly injured, who go to the hospital because they’re doing this job. We use grenades and tear gas to stop the migrants, but they throw stones, smoke bombs and burning life jackets at us. All our vehicles are damaged. We’re practically out of ammunition. It’s not easy every day, every single day.”
The police chief said,
“Last year, two night-shift officers were surrounded by migrants and almost got burned to death. The migrants had set fire to the place with bottles of petrol. They were dog handlers. Two against 60. They risked their lives to prevent a boat from reaching England. Is it worth dying burned alive to let a boat pass? Would you?”
He acknowledged that different forces along the northern coast were poorly coordinated, warning that police had no dedicated training to manage migrant incidents.
Out-of-area police were sent for migrant patrols, forcing local officers to manage crime and border duties simultaneously.
Mr Alegre said,
“That’s not good for the French taxpayer. In my opinion, we need to create special units that would work all year round, covering the entire border from the Belgian border to Boulogne, both the police and the gendarmerie, but working only on the beaches.”
He stated,
“It’s currently too compartmentalised, meaning that if, for example, gendarmes between Calais and Dunkirk are attacked by migrants and find themselves surrounded, which has already happened, the gendarmes will call the police or vice versa. It would be quicker if there was direct communication.”
What did Marc Alegre say about police training and border duties?
Marc Alegre said police sent from outside the region had no formal training.
He said,
“No one has been trained in France [to deal with migrants and small boat departures]. It’s all on-the-job experience. [Local police] know the beaches, we know the migrants from working there every day, and we know how to deal with them.”
The police chief stated,
“But when you come from Lyon or Paris and you come to work on the beach, it’s not the same job. When you work in a housing project, it’s not the same way of working as on the beach.”
He highlighted recruitment issues, saying,
“At the police academy, where people can choose their police station in France, they know that if they go to Calais or Dunkirk, they’ll work twice as hard as in other places.”
Mr Alegre added,
“We have to motivate them because they have to do the normal work of the police, but on top of that, they have to guard the borders. That’s twice as much work for them, with more risks and more work, but for nothing extra.”
What did Marc Alegre say about misused British funds and police gear?
Marc Alegre warned that British funds were often spent inefficiently.
He said,
“Regarding the resources bought with British funds, often we don’t ask the police officers who are on the ground for the equipment they really need.”
Mr Marc added,
“For example, we got some 4×4 vehicles that can go on the beach. That’s good, but my colleagues would have preferred pick-up trucks because when we discover a boat, we have to put it somewhere, and it doesn’t fit in the boot of a seven-seater. But a boat with an engine can be put in the back of a pick-up truck and driven away.”
The police chief said the UK’s new “one in, one out” agreement could act as a deterrent. However, he warned it would only work if deported migrants were not sent to northern France.
What did Keir Starmer say about the UK-France migration deal?
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated,
“This ground-breaking deal is a crucial further step in turning the tide on illegal small boat crossings and restoring order to our immigration system.”
He said,
“For the first time, illegal migrants will be sent back to France – targeting the heart of these gangs’ business model and sending a clear message that these life-threatening journeys are pointless.”
Mr Starmer added,
“By resetting our relationships across Europe, we’ve made levels of co-operation possible never seen before. This is about grip not gimmicks, and what serious government looks like – taking down these criminal enterprises piece by piece as we secure our borders through my Plan for Change.”
What did Yvette Cooper say about the UK-France Channel agreement?
Yvette Cooper, who served as Home Secretary at the time of the UK-France deal and now serves as UK Foreign Secretary following Keir Starmer’s cabinet reshuffle, said,
“Dangerous small boats in our Channel undermine our border security and put lives at risk. That is why we are so determined to work with France to go after the criminal smuggler gangs, to undermine their business model, to begin returns and to prevent boat crossings.”
She stated,
“This new pilot agreement with France is extremely important and allows us for the first time to return people who have paid to travel here illegally, and will sit alongside our wider joint enforcement action, including disrupting supply chains to seize boats and engines, shutting down social media accounts, and targeting finances.”
Ms Cooper added,
“Since last summer, we have returned over 30,000 people with no right to be in the UK and a major surge in immigration enforcement activity, with a 51% increase in the number of illegal working arrests. We are building the foundations of a new and stronger approach to protecting our border security.”
Key details about the UK-France deal
The UK-France deal was ratified on August 5, 2025, with the pilot running until June 11, 2026. Under the agreement, the UK can return inadmissible small boat arrivals to France and take pre-vetted asylum seekers in return.
The scheme excludes minors and security threats. It targets 50 returns per week, though critics question its deterrence and highlight legal challenges.
Number of illegal migrants in the UK
Small boat crossings accounted for 43,000 arrivals, 88% of irregular entries, up 38% from last year. Detected irregular arrivals reached 49,000, with Afghans the largest group. Enforced returns rose to 8,590, a 22% increase.
Only 5,563 small boat arrivals between 2018 and March 2025 were returned, just 4% of total arrivals.