The largest number of migrants recorded as crossing the Channel to the UK on a single boat came to the UK on Saturday.
The crossing saw 125 people on one vessel come over from France, the PA news agency understands.
The number of people on board breaks a previous record from August, when 106 migrants crossed to the UK on what was dubbed a âmega dinghyâ by media.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: âThese small boats crossings are utterly unacceptable and the vile people smugglers behind them are wreaking havoc on our borders.
âThanks to our deal with France, people crossing in small boats can be detained and the first removals have now begun.
âProtecting the UK border is my priority as Home Secretary and I will explore all options to restore order to our immigration system.â
Several people have been removed to France under the UK Governmentâs âone in, one outâ deal.
It is part of Sir Keir Starmerâs efforts to âsmash the gangsâ that smuggle migrants to the UK and deter people from making the journey.
The number of migrant arrivals on small boats has topped 33,000 in 2025 so far, marking a record for this point in the year since data on Channel crossings was first reported in 2018.
Saturday saw 895 people arrive in 12 boats.
A child reportedly died off the French coast on Sunday morning while attempting to cross the Channel in a small boat.
It came a day after two women died attempting to cross to the UK in a separate incident off the northern coast of France.
According to the Nord Littoral website, an investigation was launched into the latest death which happened at about 6.30am on Sunday at Ecault beach, in Saint-Etienne-au-Mont.
It also said 48 migrants were cared for by emergency services but the boat carried on across the Channel.
Cecile Gressier, the prosecutor in Boulogne-sur-Mer, told the local media website: âAn investigation has been opened to determine the conditions of death. The age and nationality of the victim are not determined.â
The deaths of the two women, reported to be from Somalia, happened after about 100 people had left northern France for the UK in a makeshift boat overnight on Friday into Saturday, French media said.
Around 60 people were rescued from the overnight incident and a couple and their child with moderate hypothermia were taken to a hospital in Boulogne, the reports said.
The incident happened south of the Neufchatel-Hardelot beaches between Boulogne and Le Touquet.
French newspaper La Voix Du Nord said the two women were at least the 20th Channel crossings deaths so far this year.
Last year, 50 people died while trying to cross the Channel, according to incidents recorded by the French coastguard, in what is considered the deadliest year since the crisis unfolded.
The International Organisation for Migration has also reported several more migrant deaths believed to be linked to crossing attempts in 2024 and this year.
