Rescued migrants arriving on UK shores after crossing Channel (Image: Getty)
Andy Burnham has been accused of “gaslighting” Britons by blaming Brexit for the country’s small boats crisis.
The Prime Minister claimed a “loss of collaboration” with neighbouring countries following Britain’s departure from the EU had made it harder to stop illegal Channel crossings.
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His comments came at the end of another bruising week for the Home Office, with two men dying within 48 hours while attempting the journey.
More than 700 migrants also reached the UK on Wednesday, while two boats managed to land on British shores undetected in the space of just two days.
During a blitz of regional interviews ahead of Labour’s conference on Sunday, the Prime Minister was pressed on whether he would stop small boats completely – a commitment already made by the Conservatives and Reform UK.
Mr Burnham told BBC South East: “You’ve got to keep working towards that. I do point to the loss of collaboration with neighbours that came with Brexit. That hasn’t helped.
“We had a more… cooperative system, if you like, in the past, so we are not able to have the same levels of collaboration that we used to have, but I don’t put that forward as a reason why we won’t keep working until we get the crossings right down.”
He added: “That is our goal, that we don’t want to see any crossings at all. I’m not going to give you a date by which we can do that, or a promise that we will do it, as other governments have done in terms of a particular deadline.
“But what I will say to you is I will not stop nor will the Home Secretary until we bear down every element of this criminal, illegal activity and that we do so in a way that gets the numbers right now.”
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp MP reacted furiously, telling the Express: “This is total nonsense. Andy Burnham is gaslighting us all to hide his own failures, with over 1,000 illegal immigrants coming in this week alone.
“Under the previous Dublin arrangements in the EU, we only ever sent a handful of people back to Europe, and in fact received more than we sent.
“While in Dublin, removals only amounted to a tiny fraction of small boat arrivals. Other European countries are still in the Dublin scheme and it hasn’t helped Germany, France or even Ireland with their illegal migration problems. Andy Burnham is not telling the truth.
“The only way to stop the crossings is to deport all illegal immigrants upon arrival. To do this we need to leave the European Convention on Human Rights. And that’s the one thing that weak borders Burnham will never do.”
Reform UKs leader Nigel Farage MP said: “Before Brexit we had agreements that meant that we took more people than we sent back. Burnham is clearly clueless on policy detail.
“Many people voted for Brexit because the British public wanted to control our borders.
“Successive governments have betrayed that, and Burnham will clearly be no different.”
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood hit out at undetected migrant landings on UK beaches this week.
She ordered an urgent review after two boats reached Kent without being intercepted.
The 44 migrants who arrived on Thursday in one boat was a significantly lower number than the 781 who came over in 10 small boats the previous day – the highest number for a single day in 2026.
So far this year 18,565 people have made the Channel crossing, which is 42% lower than the same period in 2025 when 32,188 had made the treacherous journey to England in small boats.
This week’s crossing has taken the number of small boat arrivals since Labour stormed to victory in the 2024 General Election to 83,279 – this is more than the number of soldiers in the British Army.
The Government’s controversial “one in, one out” migrant deal with France is due to expire at the end of this month, with no replacement agreement yet in place.
Reports have suggested Paris could demand that Britain accepts migrants from across the EU as part of any successor deal.
The existing scheme, under which some migrants who cross the Channel illegally are returned to France in exchange for asylum seekers being brought legally to Britain, costs an average of £56,000 for every person sent back, according to Ms Mahmood.
Government figures show that between August 4, 2025 and June 30 this year, 1,087 people were returned to France under the scheme, while 1,117 were transferred to Britain.
Over the same period, 27,920 migrants arrived in the UK by small boat.
The two migrants’ deaths this week happened when around 70 people were preparing to make the treacherous journey from the Camiers and Sainte-Cécile area on Thursday.
The death, from a suspected heart attack, came 24 hours after another man also died on the beach of Neufchâtel-Hardelot following an attempt to leave for England.
French prosecutors have opened criminal enquiries into the tragedies.
At least 21 people – including women and children – have died on the Channel route towards the UK since the beginning of the year, estimates have suggested.
Mr Philp said: “People are dying because of these crossings. I recently witnessed first-hand on a French beach young men aggressively shoving women and children off a boat as they tried to board. This is a deadly and increasingly chaotic trade run by criminal gangs, putting vulnerable people at enormous risk. When people arrive here, some go on to commit appalling crimes, including murder and rape. It is time for a completely different approach. Australia showed more than a decade ago that it is possible to break the people-smuggling model.”
Elsewhere, Mr Burnham said: “Boat crossings are down by 50% on what they were six years ago. And that shows the measures that we’re taking are tough and they’re working. What it also shows is the gangs are having to try different things, different routes, different vessels.
“And again, although that’s difficult for people where those changes are being felt. It also is a sign that what we’re doing is working, we’ve been disrupting the gangs, they are having to change.
“And we will be relentless with our changes as well to make sure we keep getting the numbers down. But if you look at the figures, there is huge progress year on year and overall a massive reduction since the early 2020s.”
He also said turning up to a protest dressed in black and wearing a face covering is “not the British way”.
Six people were arrested after anti-migrant protesters gathered at a marina in Gosport, Hampshire on Tuesday night.
Some of the protesters wore black clothing and face coverings, and chanted “send them back”.
“I recognise the concern that many people in the public have around immigration.
“But this is something different, Mr Burnham told ITV Meridian.
“You don’t take it out on the police. You don’t attack the police. You don’t intimidate the rest of the public.
“If, you know, you are just expressing a concern.
“This is a different agenda.
“And it needs to be seen as such, and dealt with as such.
“But at the same time, addressing the genuine concern of people.
“I think those who bring this fear to the streets are not, in any way representing the vast majority of people.”
Andy Burnham Fury Over ‘Gaslighting’ Brits as He Blames Brexit for Small Boats Crisis
The political argument over Britain’s small boats crisis has entered another heated phase after Prime Minister Andy Burnham pointed to Brexit as one of the factors that have made it harder for the United Kingdom to cooperate with neighbouring European countries.
Speaking in a series of interviews ahead of the Labour Party conference, Burnham argued that Britain had experienced a “loss of collaboration with neighbours” since leaving the European Union. His comments immediately triggered criticism from opponents, who accused him of shifting responsibility for the continuing Channel crossings onto Brexit rather than accepting responsibility for the government’s current immigration policy.
The controversy comes at a particularly sensitive moment. Small boat crossings remain one of the most politically difficult issues facing successive British governments. Although the number of people arriving by small boats has fallen significantly compared with the same period in 2025, crossings have continued, including a series of incidents in September that placed renewed pressure on the government.
For Burnham, the argument is not simply about the number of people arriving on British shores. It is also about the practical consequences of Britain’s changed relationship with European countries following Brexit.
Brexit and the loss of cooperation
Burnham’s central argument is that Britain previously operated within a much broader European framework for cooperation on migration, policing, databases and border security. Since Brexit, some of those arrangements have changed, creating additional difficulties for British authorities.
He has not argued that Brexit is the only reason small boats are crossing the Channel. Instead, his point is that leaving the EU removed or altered mechanisms through which Britain could cooperate with its neighbours.
That distinction is important because the small boats phenomenon has many causes. People smugglers operate internationally, migrants travel through several countries before reaching northern France, weather conditions affect crossings, and conflicts and political instability elsewhere can influence migration patterns.
Nevertheless, Burnham’s decision to highlight Brexit has given his opponents an opportunity to challenge his government on whether it is adequately addressing the problem today.
Critics have described his remarks as “gaslighting” the public, arguing that British voters supported Brexit in part because they wanted greater national control over immigration and borders. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage was among those attacking Burnham’s explanation, saying that Brexit supporters expected Britain to regain control of its borders rather than hear Brexit blamed for continuing migration problems.
The dispute therefore goes beyond immigration statistics. It touches one of the central political questions of modern Britain: whether leaving the European Union ultimately strengthened or weakened the country’s ability to control migration.
A crisis that has outlived several governments
The small boats issue did not begin with Burnham’s government.
The number of migrants crossing the English Channel in small inflatable boats increased dramatically during the early 2020s, becoming a major political issue under Conservative governments and continuing under Labour.
Successive prime ministers have promised to reduce or eliminate the crossings. Policies have included agreements with France, increased funding for border enforcement, cooperation with international law-enforcement agencies, measures targeting people-smuggling gangs and attempts to create alternative routes for asylum seekers.
Yet none of those approaches has completely eliminated the crossings.
Burnham has therefore inherited a problem that has already survived multiple governments and policy changes. In August, he promised to be “relentless” in tackling the crossings and said Britain needed to regain control of its border while also establishing safe routes for people genuinely requiring protection.
His government has also emphasized cooperation with France.
In September, Burnham met French President Emmanuel Macron in Downing Street, with Britain and France announcing plans to increase police efforts against large boats being prepared for Channel crossings.
That development illustrates an apparent tension in Burnham’s position. While he criticizes the loss of European cooperation associated with Brexit, his government is simultaneously attempting to build stronger bilateral arrangements with France and pursue closer relationships with European institutions.
The numbers tell a complicated story
The latest figures make the political debate particularly complicated.
By late September, more than 17,000 people had crossed the Channel by boat during 2026, according to figures reported by The Times. However, the number was substantially lower than during the equivalent period in 2025.
Earlier figures published by ITV showed 14,526 arrivals by early August, representing a 43% reduction compared with the same point in 2025. The government also said that nearly 800 National Crime Agency officers were working against organised immigration crime, compared with 376 at the beginning of 2025.
This creates two competing narratives.
The government can point to a substantial year-on-year reduction and argue that its measures are beginning to work. Opponents can point to the fact that thousands of people continue to make the dangerous journey across one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
Both facts can exist simultaneously.
The fall in crossings does not mean the problem has disappeared. Equally, continued crossings do not necessarily mean that every government measure has failed.
Burnham has repeatedly stressed this distinction, arguing that progress should be measured by long-term reductions rather than by individual days when large numbers of migrants arrive.
Why the “gaslighting” accusation matters
The word “gaslighting” has become increasingly common in political debate, but in this controversy it represents a disagreement over responsibility.
Critics argue that voters were promised greater border control after Brexit and that blaming Brexit for current problems risks reversing that political argument. From this perspective, the government should explain precisely what it is doing to stop people-smuggling networks and prevent dangerous crossings rather than focus on decisions made years earlier.
Burnham’s argument is different.
He is saying that effective border control depends partly on international cooperation. Britain may have greater formal independence outside the EU, but independence does not automatically mean that British authorities can obtain information, return people or coordinate operations as easily as before.
The Liberal Democrats have made a similar argument, claiming that closer involvement with European migration systems could give Britain access to information and mechanisms that would help tackle irregular migration.
Whether those arrangements would substantially reduce Channel crossings remains a matter of political and policy debate.
The human cost
Behind the political arguments are people taking enormous risks.
In September, two men died within 48 hours while attempting to cross the Channel, highlighting the dangers associated with journeys in overcrowded and unsuitable boats. More than 700 migrants reportedly reached Britain on one day during the same week.
The deaths demonstrate why the issue is not simply an argument about statistics.
For British authorities, there is the challenge of securing the border and disrupting criminal smuggling networks. For France and Britain, there is the need to prevent people from attempting extremely dangerous sea journeys. For migrants and asylum seekers, the journey can involve enormous personal risk.
Burnham has therefore argued for a combination of stronger enforcement and legal routes.
His position is that simply attempting to stop boats without addressing the demand for dangerous crossings may not solve the underlying problem. Safe and legal routes, he argues, could reduce the incentive for migrants to rely on criminal gangs.
That approach, however, remains controversial, particularly among politicians who argue that additional routes could encourage more migration.
A wider Brexit argument
Burnham’s comments also fit into a broader debate about Britain’s relationship with Europe.
Since becoming prime minister, he has indicated that Britain should develop closer practical cooperation with the EU while remaining outside the bloc. He has spoken about economic cooperation, security and migration while also emphasizing Britain’s independent position.
In September, Burnham expressed interest in Britain becoming a “trusted partner” in the EU’s industrial initiatives, reflecting his wider attempt to improve relations with European governments.
Migration may become one of the most difficult parts of that relationship.
Britain wants stronger cooperation with European countries, but it also wants to maintain control over its own immigration system. European governments, meanwhile, have their own political pressures and legal obligations.
Finding a balance between those objectives will be difficult.
What happens next?
The small boats issue is unlikely to disappear from British politics.
Burnham has made clear that his government wants crossings reduced dramatically and has rejected the idea that the government should simply accept continued arrivals. At the same time, he has emphasized cooperation with France, stronger action against smuggling gangs and the possibility of safe routes.
The political opposition will continue to demand faster results.
For Conservative and Reform politicians, every new arrival provides an opportunity to argue that Labour’s approach is insufficient. For Labour, the year-on-year decline provides evidence that enforcement measures are having an impact.
The Brexit argument adds another layer.
Whether Brexit itself should be regarded as a major cause of today’s small boats crisis depends partly on which aspect of the problem is being examined. Britain undoubtedly changed its institutional relationship with European partners after leaving the EU, but the emergence of Channel crossings also reflects broader international migration patterns, organised crime, conflicts and the policies of several successive governments.
What is clear is that Burnham’s remarks have reopened one of Britain’s most persistent political arguments: how much control a country can exercise over its borders on its own, and how much effective border enforcement ultimately depends on cooperation with other countries.
As the government continues its efforts to reduce Channel crossings, the public debate will likely remain focused on two questions. Can Britain achieve significantly stronger control over its borders? And can it do so while maintaining the international cooperation necessary to confront criminal smuggling networks?
For Burnham, the answer involves rebuilding cooperation with Britain’s European neighbours without abandoning the principle of national border control. His critics, however, argue that the government should concentrate less on the legacy of Brexit and more on delivering the control that voters have repeatedly been promised.
The disagreement is therefore unlikely to end with one interview or one set of statistics. The small boats crisis has become a test not only of Britain’s immigration policy, but also of the country’s post-Brexit relationship with Europe.