Channel crossings: Housing delays for migrants spark fears of ‘mob unrest’
CHANNEL migrants are threatening "mob unrest" after delays to accommodation, it is claimed.
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After record numbers of channel crossings this year, Border Force union has warned they are being “overwhelmed”. On Friday, 336 illegal migrants arrived in 19 boats, marking a record high this year.
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A Home Office spokesperson told Express.co.uk: “We will continue to ensure we have the resources needed to process all arrivals safely and securely.
“Every migrant arrival is tested for COVID and is placed in isolation for 10 days.
“This government is bringing forward legislation through our New Plan for Immigration which will break the business model of these heinous people smuggling networks and save lives.”
In addition, the spokesperson told Express.co.uk: "All arrivals are tested on arrival in the UK and that was the case this weekend. When arrivals numbers are high, some arrivals are tested away from the Tug Haven site to avoid over-crowding and maintain a covid secure environment.
"All arrivals are carefully managed in-line with Government guidance and anyone who is symptomatic is taken to designated accommodation and tested prior to entry.
"Border Force and Immigration Enforcement officers are equipped with full, medical-grade PPE including masks and gloves, which they can wear when dealing with migrant arrivals.
'Where the number of migrant arrivals is higher than expected, additional multi-agency resource is deployed to ensure arrivals are managed effectively."
Lucy Moreton, professional officer for the ISU immigration union, said those who arrive in the country are expecting to be moved quickly to accommodation.
Ms Moreton added staff feel “increasingly threatened”, and warned they feel “there is a risk of unrest from these groups”.
Ms Moreton, speaking to The Telegraph, said immigrants “know they are going to be moved into accommodation” and added “they get cross about it” if it does not happen promptly.
READ MORE: Cross-Channel migrant numbers double in year
She told the outlet: “They have to be clothed but we cannot provide hot food there. They might not have eaten anything.
“There is a mob mentality that takes over. The vast majority are young males. The families and children are moved clear very quickly.
“These are groups of people used to acting together to get what they need and frequently we cannot understand what they are saying to each other.
“The numbers arriving are phenomenal.”
So far this year, the number of migrants that arrived in the UK is more than double that of 2020.
Last year saw a total of 8,713 migrants reach the UK, which was more than four times the number in 2019.
As of May 16, Migrant Watch UK holds a total of 3,107 people have crossed the British Channel since January.
The Home Office also announced that more than 500 migrants have crossed the Channel in the four days between Friday and Tuesday.
On Friday, 19 boats carrying 336 people were intercepted by UK authorities, while seven boats carried a further 144 migrants on Saturday.
One boat with 17 people onboard crossed the Channel on Sunday, and a further 71 people travelled in three boats on Monday.
Home Office figures hold more than 3,600 people had been prevented from crossing the Channel by French authorities so far this year.
The Government department also said it will crack down on the criminal gangs who traffic migrants across the channel, saying they are “putting profits before people's lives".
Home Secretary Priti Patel intended to make the crossing "unviable" when overhaul plans for the asylum seeker system were published in March.
The plans would see illegal immigrants returned to safer places such as “France and other EU countries”, but many of these nations are understood to have refuted them.