France facing fresh fury as new officers for mega dinghies won’t go in the water – ‘joke’ . HYN

But London and Paris faced as the new “surge team” will not be allowed to enter the water.

A “surge team” of 45 officers will be deployed to cover areas such as Le Touquet, Berck, Le Tréport and Dieppe.

The Daily Express is aware of one dinghy – carrying 173 people – that sank off the coast of Boulogne after launching from Dieppe. And a dinghy carrying a staggering 230 people smashed all records for the biggest boats detected in the Channel.

And they won’t be able to act once the boats enter the water unless the commander gives a specific order to save lives.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: “It’s a joke these officers can’t even go into knee-deep water to stop illegal immigrants. This will mean they’re next to useless.

More officers change nothing if they are still banned from going into the water, because once a dinghy has been launched, they can only stand on the beach and watch it leave.

“I saw this for myself in France recently with 10 armed French Gendarmes Nationale – who UK taxpayers fund – standing around doing nothing while 100 illegal immigrants embarked in knee deep water.

“The £660 million we pay should be withheld until the French prevent all embarkations in shallow waters.”

Robert Bates, Research Director at the Centre for Migration Control, said: “This is clearly nothing more than yet another empty gesture from the British and French governments.

“The public is rightly infuriated that the political class are refusing to take the firm steps needed to stop the Channel crisis, and is instead simply coming up with yet another ingenious way to waste money.

“We do not need the help of the French to stop the boats. A strong deterrent of detention and deportation would be far more effective than sucking up to Macron.”

Mr Burnham and Mr Macron met at No 10 on Thursday morning after spending the previous evening together at the British Museum alongside the King to mark the special exhibition of the Bayeux Tapestry.

While the combined total number of boat crossings over the summer months has dropped to its lowest since 2019, smugglers appear to have started loading more people onto fewer, larger vessels.

“It was now vital to ensure that success was scaled up across Europe to deter illegal migration, the leaders agreed.

“On Ukraine, they discussed next steps on establishing local assembly lines in Ukraine for the long-range missile, SCALP, which uses British technology, and reflected on the successful Coalition of the Willing meeting in Kyiv last week.

“The two leaders also reflected on the situation in the Middle East, including the need to ensure de-escalation in the Strait of Hormuz. The Prime Minister also raised Israel‘s latest move on the E1 settlement, adding that it was unacceptable and only served to undermine the prospect of the two-state solution.

“The leaders agreed to step up work across the full spectrum of shared challenges to deliver for people in both countries and looked forward to speaking again soon.”

France is facing renewed criticism over its efforts to stop illegal migration across the English Channel after a new team of 45 police officers was reportedly restricted from entering the water to prevent migrants boarding large inflatable boats. The announcement has triggered a political row in Britain, with opposition politicians questioning whether the latest agreement between Prime Minister Andy Burnham and French President Emmanuel Macron will make any meaningful difference to the growing use of so-called mega-dinghies.

The controversy comes at a particularly sensitive time for both governments. Britain has been struggling to control irregular migration across the Channel, while French authorities face increasing pressure to prevent criminal smuggling networks from organising dangerous crossings. Although both countries have promised closer cooperation, critics argue that the latest measures do not go far enough.

The new 45-strong police team is intended to strengthen patrols along the western French coastline, including areas such as Le Touquet, Berck, Le Tréport and Dieppe. These locations have become increasingly important as people-smuggling gangs adapt their operations and move away from heavily monitored beaches around Calais and Dunkirk.

The officers will include local gendarmes and members of the French National Police. Their main responsibility will be to identify smuggling activity, disrupt preparations and prevent inflatable boats from being launched.

However, the most controversial aspect of the arrangement concerns what happens after a boat enters the water. The officers will generally require specific authorisation from their commander before entering the water to intervene. Such intervention is expected to be permitted particularly when there is an immediate threat to life.

This restriction has angered several British politicians, who believe the officers will be unable to stop migrants boarding boats in shallow water. They argue that once a large inflatable vessel has entered the sea, preventing its departure becomes significantly more difficult.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp has described the arrangement as a joke, arguing that police officers should be able to intervene before boats leave French beaches. He has also questioned why British taxpayers should continue providing substantial financial assistance if French authorities cannot prevent departures from taking place.

Philp has called for the British government to reconsider its financial support to France, which includes approximately £660 million under the wider cooperation arrangements. His position is that future payments should depend on measurable results rather than announcements about additional officers.

The criticism reflects a wider frustration among politicians who believe that Britain’s financial contribution should produce stronger enforcement on the French coastline.

Nevertheless, the French authorities face a difficult operational challenge. Officers must balance the need to disrupt illegal crossings against the safety of migrants, police personnel and other people at sea. Large inflatable boats can become unstable when heavily overcrowded, and dangerous confrontations in the water could lead to serious injuries or deaths.

French police are therefore expected to concentrate on preventing launches before vessels become operational. This approach is intended to reduce the risks associated with direct confrontations in the sea.

The controversy has also highlighted the growing size of boats used by criminal smuggling networks. Rather than relying exclusively on smaller inflatable vessels, gangs have increasingly turned to larger boats capable of carrying extraordinary numbers of passengers.

One vessel reportedly carried as many as 230 people across the Channel, highlighting the scale of the challenge facing British and French authorities.

These larger boats create additional problems for coastguards and rescue services. Overcrowded inflatable vessels can become dangerously unstable, particularly when passengers move around or attempt to board in difficult weather conditions.

The longer crossings also increase the possibility of engine failure, punctures and other emergencies. Passengers may spend many hours at sea without adequate safety equipment or sufficient space.

People-smuggling organisations exploit the desperation of individuals seeking to reach Britain. They often promise safe passage while placing passengers aboard vessels that are unsuitable for carrying large numbers of people across one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.

Both governments have repeatedly condemned these criminal networks and promised to disrupt their operations.

Andy Burnham has defended the latest agreement, arguing that cooperation between Britain and France is producing measurable progress. According to the government, additional intelligence operations and coastal patrols have helped prevent potential crossings and disrupt smuggling activities.

Downing Street has also highlighted the deployment of specialist teams targeting organised criminal networks. These units are intended to identify the people financing and organising crossings rather than concentrating exclusively on the migrants themselves.

The government has reported that small-boat crossings during 2026 have been lower than during the equivalent period in 2025. Ministers argue that the figures demonstrate the importance of international cooperation and the need to maintain pressure on smuggling organisations.

However, opposition politicians question whether the reductions are primarily the result of stronger enforcement or changing weather conditions and seasonal patterns. They argue that temporary decreases do not necessarily demonstrate that the government’s strategy is working over the longer term.

The dispute has therefore become a political confrontation between Burnham’s administration and its critics over the effectiveness of the immigration agreement with France.

Nigel Farage and Reform UK have also used the controversy to argue that Britain needs a fundamentally different approach to border security. Reform has called for tougher detention and deportation arrangements, claiming that existing policies do not create sufficient deterrence against irregular migration.

The Conservatives have similarly criticised the latest agreement, arguing that additional police numbers are meaningless if officers cannot intervene when boats are being loaded.

The government rejects the suggestion that the arrangement is ineffective. Ministers argue that the additional officers will improve surveillance, disrupt criminal operations and prevent boats from reaching the water in the first place.

There is also a broader European dimension to the problem. Smuggling networks are not restricted to one French coastal area. When enforcement becomes stronger in one location, criminal organisations can move their operations elsewhere.

The shift towards beaches further west demonstrates how quickly these organisations can adapt. This creates additional demands on French police, coastguards and local authorities, who must monitor a much larger stretch of coastline.

The British government has therefore emphasised that cooperation with France must extend beyond individual beaches. Intelligence sharing, financial investigations and international action against organised criminal networks are all important parts of the strategy.

Another significant question concerns the financial cost of Britain’s relationship with France on migration enforcement. The £660 million contribution has attracted considerable attention because taxpayers want to know whether public money is producing tangible results.

Supporters of the agreement argue that preventing departures in France is generally more practical than dealing with large numbers of arrivals after they reach British shores. Rescue operations, immigration processing, accommodation and enforcement all create additional expenses.

However, critics argue that the government should publish clearer information about the results achieved through its funding arrangements. They want transparent figures showing how many boats have been prevented from launching, how many smuggling suspects have been arrested and how many criminal networks have been disrupted.

Such information would help Parliament and the public assess whether the agreement represents good value for money.

The humanitarian consequences must also remain central to the debate. Migrants attempting to cross the Channel include people fleeing conflict, persecution and economic hardship. Their legal circumstances vary, and those requesting asylum are entitled to have their claims assessed individually.

At the same time, the dangerous nature of the crossings means that governments have a responsibility to prevent criminal gangs from exposing vulnerable people to unnecessary risks.

Effective border enforcement and humanitarian protection are not necessarily opposing objectives. Preventing dangerous departures can save lives, provided that authorities also respect applicable asylum and human rights obligations.

The challenge for Burnham and Macron is to demonstrate that their partnership can deliver practical improvements rather than simply generate political announcements.

The additional 45 officers may provide useful reinforcement, but their effectiveness will depend on how they are deployed, what powers they can exercise and whether intelligence operations successfully identify the criminal organisations behind the crossings.

The coming months will therefore be important in assessing the results of the new arrangements. If large vessels continue departing from French beaches, pressure on both governments is likely to increase. If patrols successfully prevent launches and disrupt smuggling networks, the agreement could demonstrate the value of coordinated enforcement.

Ultimately, the Channel migration crisis cannot be solved through additional police numbers alone. It requires effective intelligence, international cooperation, action against criminal financiers, efficient asylum procedures and a credible system for removing individuals who have no legal right to remain in Britain.

In conclusion, France’s decision to deploy 45 additional police officers along its western coastline has reignited a major political debate about the effectiveness of British-funded border enforcement. Critics argue that restrictions on entering the water undermine the operation, while the French and British governments maintain that preventing boats from launching is the safest and most effective approach. The dispute over the £660 million contribution also highlights the importance of financial accountability and measurable results. With people-smuggling gangs increasingly using larger vessels and changing their launch locations, both countries face a complicated operational challenge. The real test of the agreement will not be the number of officers announced or the promises made by political leaders, but whether it can reduce dangerous crossings, disrupt criminal networks and protect lives in the English Channel.

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