RUMBLED: 18 migrants found in back of lorry after reaching Britain on tourist ferry
A GROUP of 18 migrants have been found in the back of a lorry in Britain after coming from the Netherlands.
The migrants were found after their P&O ferry docked in Hull
The migrants were discovered during a routine UK Border Force search after the P&O ferry docked in Hull, Humberside.
The driver of the lorry, a 51-year-old man, has been arrested on suspicion of facilitating illegal immigration and is being held for questioning.
Dutch police inspect a lorry for migrants
A spokesman for P&O Ferries said: "We will continue to work closely with the UK Border Force and call on Europoort to strengthen security measures."
The spokesman said the migrants were hidden in the back of a lorry on the freight deck and they did not come into contact with tourist passengers.
The driver of the lorry with the migrants has been arrested
All 18 people are now in detention pending interview by immigration officers
A Home Office spokesman said: “Border force officers at the port of Hull detained 18 people on suspicion of entering the UK illegally this morning following a search of a lorry that had arrived on a ferry from Rotterdam.
“All 18 people are now in detention pending interview by immigration officers.”
Since the start of the refugee crisis, migrants have been using lorries and boats as a means to head to the UK.
In December 400 migrants climbed fences on to the motorway in Calais and attempted to stop traffic so they could hide on UK-bound lorries.
migrants try and enter the UK
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Eurotunnel has demanded that British and French Governments hand over £22.6 million to compensate for lost revenue during last summer's migrant crisis.
Services were often disrupted as migrants made daily attempts to board lorries and trains from Calais heading to the UK.