""They are still relatively small numbers. But the thing I would say is, this was a pilot. It was designed to try to prove that this new model of working with the French could work. "And there are practical issues around how quickly you can detain people and then get them on a plane and move them out to France.""
""Defending the deal, she acknowledged the number of removals was "relatively small" but said there were "practical issues" about how quickly people could be detained. Ministers hope the scheme will deter people from attempting to enter the UK illegally on small boats via the English Channel by threatening removal to France. A total of 41,472 migrants crossed the Channel in small boats in 2025 - almost 5,000 more than the previous year.""
The UK has returned 281 migrants to France so far under a one-in, one-out pilot agreement. Shabana Mahmood said 350 people entered the UK from France through the scheme's approved route. For each person returned, another with a strong UK asylum case is admitted. The UK can detain Channel crossers immediately and typically agree returns with French authorities within about two weeks. Removals and admissions have fluctuated since the pilot began last September, with early months showing small numbers. Practical issues around detention and arranging flights have limited removals. Channel crossings reached 41,472 in 2025, the highest since 2022.
Read at www.bbc.com
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