One immigrant needed to be rescued today after attempting to cross the Channel in a kayak, undermining Priti Patel’s threat to sentence people smugglers to life in prison if they are discovered.
The maximum jail term for “assisting unauthorized immigration” under new laws that went into effect last week climbed from 14 years to life. Tougher punishments under the Nationality and Borders Act.
The rule was changed as 30 migrants crossed the Channel to the UK this morning alone, making June’s almost 3,000 crossings to the UK the highest monthly number this year.
But after her Rwanda plan failed to take off last month, the Home Secretary’s pledge to end cross-Channel trafficking was dealt another blow when the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said that sentences of two to three years in prison “will be appropriate for pilots of small boats with their “hand on the tiller”.”
If the term is two to three years, the dinghy pilots may be released in a year to 18 months if they act properly behind bars.
The Court of Appeal’s ruling led to the conclusion that “Nobody is going to be getting anywhere near life,” a legal expert told The Independent. He also noted that “the maximum sentence of life has been briefed in press releases to look like the government is being tough, in the knowledge that once these cases go before the court no one will get life.”
The Home Office has stressed that the new law will result in harsher punishments. MailOnline has requested a response from the government agency.
‘Anyone found piloting a boat carrying migrants in the Channel could face life behind bars from today, as part of the largest overhaul of the asylum system in decades,’ a spokesman said in a statement made public when the regulations went into force on Tuesday.
“These new provisions will enable us to crack down on exploitation of the system and the vile people traffickers,” Priti Patel continued. “As a result of this law taking effect, they will now be liable to a potential term of life imprisonment.”
Following a man’s rescue by the French Navy in a kayak believed to be a migrant trying to make the 21-mile trek, some 30 migrants crossed the English Channel by small boat today.
On board the Border Force ship Ranger, the primarily male party was carried into Dover, Kent, just before 11 a.m.
A senior woman was spotted being helped into a wheelchair by UK officials as they waited at the harbor to remove her off the boat.
A few women and kids were among the most recent arrivals, who were apparently stopped from two dinghies.
A little girl in elementary school and a toddler were being led off the boat by a female Border Force member.
A somewhat older boy followed them closely before handing them off to soldiers in high-visibility vests and camouflage fatigues.
The remaining males were led along the gangway for processing by UK officials after the women and children had been led off the ship.
This comes after a boat in trouble was discovered off the coast of Dunkirk on Friday by the French regional operative surveillance and rescue center (CROSS) in Griz-Nez.
A man who was stuck in a kayak was rescued and delivered to the port of Dunkirk by the French Navy patrol boat Flamant.
He was taken care of by the border police when he got back to the dock.
The rule will be enforced against migrants who are observed steering dinghies and other small boats out of northern France.
High-definition video footage are already being taken by military and private drones operating over the English Channel for use as legal proof.
The Act, which was approved by Parliament in April, also establishes a new “twin-track” asylum procedure that would offer less rights to people who enter the country illegally, even if their application for refugee status is ultimately approved.
In accordance with earlier measures, the Home Office will have the authority to impose visa penalties on nationals of nations that refuse to return their own citizens.
“This is one of the most important milestones in delivering on our promise to the British public to take back control of our borders,” said Home Secretary Priti Patel.
“While there is no one solution to the global migrant crisis, these measures that take effect today play a crucial part in revamping the ailing asylum system as we implement our New Plan for Immigration,” the White House stated.
“We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that we provide protection and sanctuary to those in genuine need, but these new measures will enable us to crack down on abuse of the system and the evil people-smugglers, who will now be subject to a maximum sentence of life imprisonment as a result of this law coming into force,” she added.
The Act also raises the maximum sentence for breaking UK immigration laws or exceeding a visa’s validity from six months to four years in prison. Additionally, it permits incarcerated foreign national offenders to leave the UK up to 12 months before the conclusion of their sentence.
According to an analysis of government data by the PA news agency, 3,136 people made the voyage in June on 76 boats, traveling on 19 of those days.
It occurs after Home Secretary Priti Patel announced plans to transfer migrants to Rwanda in an effort to prevent people from making the journey two and a half months prior.
March saw 3,074 crossings, which was the second-highest number of crossings out of the 12,690 persons who completed the trip in the first half of this year.
According to Home Office data for the first quarter of the year and later data gathered by the Ministry of Defence, tiny boats like dinghies made the passage in May 2,871, 2,143 in April, 1,322 in January, and 144 in February after transiting congested maritime lanes from France (MoD).
Since 2018, November 2021 had the most crossings ever with 6,971 total.
The amount so far in 2022 is more than five times what was tallied between January and June of 2020 (2,493) and is more than twice what was tallied in the first six months of last year (5,917).
On Thursday, there were still crossings, and 94 individuals arrived in two boats in Dover, Kent. On Friday, though, activity slowed due to a weather change.
Miss Patel signed a “world-first” agreement with Rwanda on April 14 that will allow the east African country to accept asylum seekers who the UK believes came “illegally” and are therefore inadmissible under new immigration laws.
However, the first deportation flight, which was scheduled to depart on June 14, was grounded owing to legal issues.
According to the statistics, 51,824 individuals have crossed during 2018.