Emmanuel Macron could stop small boats crossing the Channel “tomorrow” if he wanted to, Robert Jenrick has insisted. The Shadow Justice Secretary said the French could halt migrant crossings, which have hit a record high so far this year, by turning back rubber dinghies.
The former Tory leadership contender told GB News: “It’s important that we have good relations with our nearest neighbour, France, but I think Macron and the French could be doing so much more to help us. If they wanted, they could stop the small boats, frankly, tomorrow, if they got their gendarmes out on the beaches, into the shallow waters, turning back the boats, as some of our other neighbours do, like the Belgians, for example.”
Mr Jenrick warned that the UK needs a deterrent such as the axed Tory Rwanda plan and that “pull factors” like hotel accommodation need to be ended.
He said: “But I don’t think we should just be leaving this to the kindness of strangers. We’ve got to have our own sovereign deterrent.
“That’s why I was a proponent of Rwanda. That’s why I feel we have to have a very simple system of our own that does not rely on anyone else, which is, if you come here illegally, you’re detained and you’re deported back home to your own country or to a safe third country in hours and days, not months and years.
“We should also be tackling the pull factors to the UK. You should not be able to work in the black market. That’s why we’ve got to stop all of those Uber and Deliveroo drivers who have no legal right to be working in the UK.
“That’s why, frankly, we should not be housing illegal migrants in hotels, living the life of Riley, when they should be in detained accommodation and then sent back home as quickly as possible.
“But the absolute heart of the issue is not what happens when you’re here, it’s that you should never be allowed to stay in the UK, and you should be removed as quickly as possible so you don’t get a foothold in the UK.”
Mr Jenrick’s comments come as Mr Macron is on a state visit to Britain with small boats top of the agenda.
Sir Keir Starmer and the French President will hold talks at No 10 today as the UK pushes for France to do more to stop migrant crossings.
The PM hopes to strike a “one in, one out” deal to send small boat arrivals back to the continent, in exchange for the UK accepting asylum seekers in Europe who have a British link.
