Over 28,000 migrants have crossed the Channel this year

Over 28,000 migrants have crossed the Channel this year
Credit: PA Media

London (Parliament Politics Magazine) – In the latest figures, there were more than 28,000 crossings – up slightly from last year, but down from 2022.

More than 600 people travelled the Channel in small vessels, the day after a baby perished on the journey. Home Office figures indicate 647 people made the crossing in 10 boats, forcing the total for the year above 28,000.

Crossings came after French authorities reported the death of a baby off the coast of Wissant in the Pas-de-Calais area. It was the 45th death registered by French coastguards so far this year, with refugee charities cautioning the Channel crossings were becoming more difficult.

Why are migrants risking dangerous Channel crossings?

Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council, expressed there had been more casualties this year than in the previous three years combined. He stated: “This procession of death and tragedy guides we need to rethink our approach. Lives will continue to be lost if we carry on as it is.”

The growing deadliness of the Channel does not seem to have deterred people from trying the crossing to Kent. These crossings take the total number of people who have created the journey this year to 28,204, almost 8% more elevated than at the same point last year but 25% down on the peak year of 2022. Since Labour came to authority, 14,630 people have made the crossing, nearly exactly the total for the same period last year and 10,000 more irregularly than in the same period in 2022.

Moreover, in September nearly 200 migrants set off from French shores and a pregnant woman and six children were among 12 migrants were perished after their sailboat “ripped” open while crossing the English Channel. They were among more than 60 individuals who had been crammed onto a sailboat less than seven metres long.

Calais charity worker Angele Vettorello, co-ordinator at Utopia 56, stated she saw 200 people trying to travel who had been halted by police. The crossings, it’s not going to quit,” she said. “We see it every month … every death at the border, the people don’t stop crossing.”

Daniele Naddei

Daniele Naddei is a journalist at Parliament News covering European affairs, was born in Naples on April 8, 1991. He also serves as the Director of the CentroSud24 newspaper. During the period from 2010 to 2013, Naddei completed an internship at the esteemed local radio station Radio Club 91. Subsequently, he became the author of a weekly magazine published by the Italian Volleyball Federation of Campania (FIPAV Campania), which led to his registration in the professional order of Journalists of Campania in early 2014, listed under publicists. From 2013 to 2018, he worked as a freelance photojournalist and cameraman for external services for Rai and various local entities, including TeleCapri, CapriEvent, and TLA. Additionally, between 2014 and 2017, Naddei collaborated full-time with various newspapers in Campania, both in print and online. During this period, he also resumed his role as Editor-in-Chief at Radio Club 91.
Naddei is actively involved as a press officer for several companies and is responsible for editing cultural and social events in the city through his association with the Medea Fattoria Sociale. This experience continued until 2021. Throughout these years, he hosted or collaborated on football sports programs for various local broadcasters, including TLA, TvLuna, TeleCapri, Radio Stonata, Radio Amore, and Radio Antenna Uno.
From 2016 to 2018, Naddei was employed as an editor at newspapers of national interest within the Il24.it circuit, including Internazionale24, Salute24, and OggiScuola. Since 2019, Naddei has been one of the creators of the Rabona television program "Calcio è Passione," which has been broadcast on TeleCapri Sport since 2023.