Rishi Sunak’s pledge to “stop the boats” carrying asylum seekers across the Channel has flopped after the number making the perilous journey soared.
Some 1,115 have arrived in the UK in the past week alone, according to Home Office figures.
That takes the total so far in 2024 to 4,644, which is a record for the first three months of a calendar year.
The numbers are a massive blow for the prime minister, who made ending the journeys one of his five key pledges to voters at the start of 2023.
Sunak has repeatedly boasted about the fact that the number of small boat crossings fell by one-third last year compared to 2022.
But the trend so far this year suggests 2024 could well see more asylum seekers crossing the Channel on makeshift vessels than ever before.
Shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock said: “Despite all the evidence to the contrary, Rishi Sunak keeps on telling the British people that small boat arrivals are coming down and his promise to stop the boats remains on track.
“Can he not see what is happening from inside his No.10 bunker, or does he think we can’t see it for ourselves?
“Either way, it’s time to get a grip and restore order to the border. Labour will strengthen our border security, crush the smuggling gangs, clear the asylum backlog, end hotel use, and set up a new returns and enforcement unit so those with no right to be in the UK are swiftly returned.”
The prime minister has insisted that the government’s plans to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda will act as a deterrent to those thinking of crossing the Channel.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “The unacceptable number of people who continue to cross the Channel demonstrates exactly why we must get flights to Rwanda off the ground as soon as possible.
“We continue to work closely with French police who are facing increasing violence and disruption on their beaches as they work tirelessly to prevent these dangerous, illegal and unnecessary journeys.
“We remain committed to building on the successes that saw arrivals drop by more than a third last year, including tougher legislation and agreements with international partners, in order to save lives and stop the boats.”