Channel migrant crossings TREBLED last year with more than 28,300 risking their lives to reach the UK - including record 1,185 in a single day - with an average of 28 crammed onto each dinghy

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Migrant crossings across the Channel trebled last year as more than 28,300 risked their lives to reach the UK.

While a record 28,395 migrants reached the UK illegally last year, 2021 also saw the record for the most migrants coming in a single day as 1,185 journeyed across in 33 boats on November 11.

An average of 28 people were crammed onto each dinghy that made the perilous crossing last year.

Last year saw the record number of migrant crossings as more than 28,000 people made the journey

British shores saw an increase of around 20,000 on 2020's tally of migrants travelling illegally

A view of one of two areas being used at a warehouse facility in Dover, Kent, for boats intercepted in the Channel by the UK Border Force

A group of people thought to be migrants being escorted to shore in Kingsdown, Kent, after being intercepted by an RNLI crew following a small boat incident in the Channel in September

A group of migrants huddle up in a line at Dungeness Lifeboat Station in Kent after making a crossing

Home Office minister Tom Pursglove MP said the Government was 'reforming' its approach by 'making the tough decisions to end the overt exploitation of our laws and UK taxpayers'.

He said: 'Seeking asylum for protection should not involve people asylum shopping country to country, or risking their lives by lining the pockets of criminal gangs to cross the Channel.

'The public has been crying out for reform for two decades and that's what this Government is delivering through our New Plan for Immigration.

A record 28,395 migrants reached the UK illegally last year by taking small boats across the Channel, a 200 per cent increase on 2020's tally

While many migrants took their first steps on British soil, some seemed more excited than others

An average of 28 people were crammed onto each dinghy that made the perilous crossing last year

Many migrants have been intercepted and saved by the RNLI, although some have perished on the journey across

'The Nationality and Borders Bill will make it a criminal offence to knowingly arrive in the UK illegally and introduce life sentences for those who facilitate illegal entry into the country.

'It will also strengthen the powers of Border Force to stop and redirect vessels, while introducing new powers to remove asylum seekers to have their claims processed outside the UK.

'MPs have already voted to reform this broken and abusive system and the sooner the House of Lords approves the Borders Bill, the sooner these reforms can be delivered.'

A group of migrants in masks were escorted to shore in Kingsdown, Kent, after they were found in a small boat in the Channel

People traffickers charge thousands of pounds for a seat on one of the dinghies bound for the UK

Despite international efforts to crack down on people smugglers, gangs have continued to ply the Dover Strait with their deadly trade, charging thousands of pounds for a berth in flimsy inflatable boats.

The dinghies seen leaving French shores and being towed into Dover have noticeably increased in size over the past year with some carrying as many as 50 people.

This is supported by data that showed an average of about 28 people travelling aboard each small boat that arrived in the UK in 2021, up from just over 13 in 2020.

The numbers of migrants arriving in the UK from across the Channel tripled from last year's numbers

It has become common this year to see a steady stream of migrants traipsing up Britain's southern shores after illegal crossings of the Channel

A young girl being helped by a Border Force officer after a group of people thought to be migrants were brought in to Dover, Kent

Home Office minister Tom Pursglove MP said the Government was 'reforming' its approach by 'making the tough decisions to end the overt exploitation of our laws and UK taxpayers'

Migrants peer through the misted-up windows of a bus after arriving in Dover, Kent, after a gruelling journey across the Channel

The dangers of the English Channel were laid bare on November 24 when at least 27 people died as their boat sank. That dinghy was likened to a blow-up pool by French interior minister Gerald Darmanin.

Ministers were warned arrivals will continue and more people will drown in the narrow stretch of water between Britain and France if the Government pursues its 'dangerous and callous policy'.

Last year's record number was an increase of about 20,000 on 2020 and came despite millions of pounds promised to French authorities to tackle the issue.

The last 12 months have seen smugglers packing more and more people aboard larger and larger dinghies, sometimes with deadly consequences.

The number of arrivals peaked in November when, despite dropping temperatures, at least 6,869 people reached the UK.

Between November 10 and 16 more than 3,100 people made the perilous crossing, the most in any seven-day stretch in the current crisis.

The same month also saw a new record for a single day, with 1,185 people reaching Britain on November 11.

Going into 2021 the most arrivals on a single day had been 416, set in September 2020.

Clare Moseley, founder of Care4Calais, a charity that supports refugees living in northern France, said rising numbers of small boat arrivals in Britain reflect a shift away from attempts to cross by lorry.

She said: 'They are some of the most vulnerable people in the world, having lost family members in bloody conflicts, suffered horrific torture and inhumane persecution.

'The Government tells us that people should travel by legal means but if this were truly possible why would so many be risking their lives in flimsy boats?

'If the Government were serious about stopping people smugglers, it would create a safe way for people to claim asylum and put people smugglers out of business once and for all.'

The Nationality and Borders Bill will make it a criminal offence to knowingly arrive in the UK illegally

Despite the increasing numbers, the UK's small boat arrivals are a fraction of the number of people arriving in Europe.

At least 120,441 people arrived in Europe via the Mediterranean by land and sea in 2021, according to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

An additional 1,839 people were thought to be dead or missing.

Refugee Action head Tim Naor Hilton said the UK Government's migrant policy will lead to more deaths in the Dover Strait.

Boats were stored after being intercepted in the Channel by Border Force, as attempts to make the crossing continued to spiral last year

He said: 'People will continue to cross the Channel in flimsy boats and smugglers will continue to profit unless ministers open up more routes for refugees to claim asylum.

'[In November] we saw the deadly result of their strategy of keeping people out rather than keeping people safe when at least 27 people died near our coast.

'Yet the Government wants to legalise this dangerous and callous policy in its Anti-Refugee Bill, which will only lead to more people drowning. It must wake up and scrap this bill now.'

Meanwhile, Refugee Council boss Enver Solomon said: 'This Government must change its approach and instead of seeking to punish or push away people seeking safety because of the type of journey they have made to the UK, they must create and commit to safe routes.

'As a country, we can save lives and empower people, who have already been through so much, to give back to the communities that welcome them.'