Almost 300 people reached UK in small boats on day of Channel death | Immigration and asylum

Almost 300 people crossed the Channel from France to England in small boats on the same day a person died when a vessel sank off the French coast.

The Home Office said 292 people made the crossing in seven boats on Friday.

One person died and another was left in a critical condition during an incident on Friday.

More than 60 people were onboard a boat as it began to deflate about 5 miles (8km) off the northern coast of France in the early hours of the morning, the French coastguard said.

The first group of people were pulled from the water at 1.15am local time (12.15am GMT) in the French-led operation, with 66 rescued within an hour.

The crossings were the first to take place in a fortnight, with the government last recording arrivals on 3 December, when 118 people entered the country.

Saturday’s figures bring the number of people arriving by the Channel this year to 29,382, compared with 45,195 people last year on this date.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, the home secretary, James Cleverly, described the death as a “horrific reminder of the people smugglers’ brutality”.

He said about 25,000 people had been “averted from crossing this year – but we must and will do more”, adding: “My thanks to all those involved in the rescue. Every boat stopped is a potential life saved.”