Image source, PA MediaByAdam Goldsmith
Reform UK has said it would launch the “the largest military operation in the English Channel since World War Two” to tackle small boat arrivals, if it forms the next government.
Under plans set to be announced at a news conference later, the Royal Navy would intercept migrant boats in the Channel and return them to France or Belgium.
When it was put to the party that the UK could not return migrants without French agreement, home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf claimed it would be possible.
Andy Burnham has pledged to be “relentless” on tackling small boat crossings, and stressed the UK needs to build a system that offers asylum seekers “safe routes”.
More than 2,000 migrants have arrived in the UK on small boats since Burnham became prime minister, and 326 people crossed the English Channel on Saturday. Home Office figures show crossings so far this year are down around 43% compared to the same period in 2025.
Reform’s plan called “operation fortress” has been endorsed by “former senior members of our armed forces”, Yusuf told BBC Radio 4 Today programme.
It would see Royal Navy vessels intercept all migrant boats in the Channel as part of a humanitarian response.
Yusuf described the scheme as “humanitarian missions” and insisted it would be compatible with rules under the European Convention on Human Rights as Article 2 protects the right to life.
International conventions on the sea allow for states to pick people up from boats if they are in danger of being lost but do not allow for them to be taken to another country without that nation’s consent.
Yusuf accepted that the UK and France may have “a diplomatic argument” if French authorities were to refuse to accept migrants escorted back to its shores, but insisted they have a “commitment under international law” to process migrants.
But Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh told BBC Radio 4 Today programme this would mean spending “a lot of time arguing with France”.
She agreed the government “absolutely needs to get a grip” on small boat crossings, but said Burnham’s team is cracking down on criminal gangs and boosting enforcement.
The prime minister visited Dover at the weekend, where he said the government was “changing the whole approach” to small boats, as the numbers of enforcement officers tackling people-smuggling gangs doubled on both sides of the Channel.
According to the Home Office, the number of National Crime Agency (NCA) officers tackling smuggling gangs facilitating small boat crossings had risen to almost 800 from 376 at the start of 2025.
Reacting to Reform’s proposals, retired Royal Navy commander Tom Sharpe told the BBC the UK’s border force is better suited to managing migrant arrivals than the navy.
Warships designed for tasks including anti-submarine defences “are not best used for ferrying people around”, he explained.
“You’re better off using an actual ferry,” he said.
Meanwhile, Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp insisted that leaving the European Convention on Human Rights should be the government’s priority to tackle illegal migration.
“That would enable us to deport every single illegal immigrant within a week of arrival,” he told BBC Breakfast. “Either back to their country of origin if possible, or a safe third country, for example Rwanda, if not.”
He said this would bring a “deterrent effect” as migrants would no longer cross the channel if they knew they would be deported straight away.
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How many people cross the English Channel in small boats?
Between 1 January and 1 August 2026, a total of 14,526 people crossed the English Channel by small boat from France. This was down by 43% on the same period the previous year.
These crossings have become the most common way for people to be detected entering the UK illegally since 2020.
Nearly all those who arrive by small boat claim asylum. Under international law, this means they are allowed to stay in the country while their asylum application is considered.
Small boat arrivals made up 42% of asylum applications between April 2025 to March 2026.
Boats that arrived in the UK from 2 August 2025 to 1 August 2026 carried an average of 67 people. This has more than doubled since 2021.
Experts say overcrowding in boats makes crossings riskier. At least 84 people died while attempting to cross the Channel in 2024, according to the United Nations (UN).
When looking at the scale of small boats crossings, the number of these arrivals is about 5% of the size of total immigration into the UK from January 2025 to December 2025.
The government has pledged to “smash the gangs” behind these crossings in order to reduce the numbers.
Who is arriving in the UK on small boats?
People from Eritrea accounted for 18% of all arrivals from April 2025 to March 2026.
In the latest figures covering January 2025 to December 2025, at least 2,000 people who arrived by small boat were found to be potential victims of human trafficking or other forms of modern slavery, according to the Home Office.
How else do people stay in the UK without permission?
Another 4,535 people were detected entering the UK without permission via other methods including hiding in vehicles, travelling on ferries or through airports from April 2025 to March 2026. This was down by 22% on the same period the previous year.
There are also individuals who arrive legally, for example via a work or study visa, and then overstay their limit.
The total number of people who live in the UK illegally after arriving legally is not known.
The number of migrants who have arrived in the UK on small boats since Burnham became PM a fortnight ago surpassed 2,000 after 326 people crossed the English Channel on Saturday.
More people attempt the potentially perilous crossing in the summer when conditions are better, and Home Office figures show small boat crossings so far this year are down around 43% compared to the same period in 2025.
And the number of small boats crossing the Channel have been on a downward trend since it peaked in 2022, Home Office figures show.
