More than 800 asylum seekers arrived in Britain via small boats on Tuesday, marking the highest single-day figure since late 2022 and adding pressure on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak ahead of a July 4 national election.
According to provisional data from Britain’s interior ministry, 882 migrants arrived on Tuesday, bringing the yearly total so far to over 12,300. The last time the daily figure was higher was in November 2022, when 947 migrants arrived in a single day.
With the opposition Labour party leading by about 20 points in opinion polls and immigration being a major concern for some voters, “stopping the boats” and reducing illegal migration has been a key promise of Sunak’s campaign.
Sunak’s immigration policy includes a plan to deport asylum seekers from Britain to Rwanda as a deterrent for migrants using small boats to cross from France. However, due to the earlier-than-expected election call, the plan has not yet been implemented.
The Labour Party, if it comes into power, has stated its intention to scrap the Rwanda policy and instead create a Border Security Command. This command would bring together personnel from the police, domestic intelligence agencies, and prosecutors to collaborate with international agencies in combating people smuggling.
