At least two dead in Channel as small boat crossing attempts begin hours after beach patrol talks fail

It comes after seven consecutive days of no small boats crossing the Channel.

Shabana Mahmood agreed the two-month extension just before the near £500 million deal aimed at reducing the number of departures was due to end at midnight on Tuesday.

It means operational contracts will continue to be funded by £16.2 million of UK Government money.

French authorities said a small boat headed towards the beach at Gravelines, near Calais, at around 9.30am on Wednesday morning, where a group of about 30 migrants was waiting.

Responders pulled eight people onto a rescue boat when they got into difficulty and a medical team was taken out to meet them.

People, including children, were seen struggling to board the vessel, while at least 12 French police officers were present in the beach area.

A French navy helicopter later carried out a search of the area to make sure nobody was left in the water, the French authority said.

When Britain’s deal with France was announced in 2023, the then-Tory government said the £478 million package would fund a new detention centre in France and hundreds of extra law enforcement officers on French shores.

But the number of crossings has risen in the following years, with some 41,472 people arriving in the UK by small boat in 2025, and Ms Mahmood is under pressure to bring numbers down.

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So far this year, some 4,441 people have arrived in the UK on small boats.

Steve Smith, chief executive of refugee charity Care4Calais, said: “It is a tragedy that another two lives have been lost to our deadly border.

“Our border is a silent killer through political choice.