Crew members at the RNLI have vowed to not apologise for responding to migrants crossing the Channel to England. Lifeboat workers were called out to some 114 boat incidents off the south coast last year, with the charity’s figures showing it rescued 1,371 people from dinghies – this amounts to 3.7% of those who tried to cross the Channel in 2024.
Crew members have said they would unapologetically react to any incident in the Channel which they were sent to do by the Coastguard, regardless of politics. “When our pager goes, we’re not thinking anything political,” Paula Lain, who volunteers for the RNLI, told the BBC. “We’re all thinking about people. We’re actively compassionate. That’s what drives us beyond any moral or civic responsibility. We’re there to help people in their most distressing times.” However, Nigel Farage once condemned the RNLI as a “taxi service” for migrants attempting to enter the UK illegally.
The Reform UK leader had also previously said that the charity in Kent and parts of East Sussex was “increasingly becoming a taxi service for illegal trafficking gangs”.
The latest Home Office data shows that more than 24,000 people have made the journey across the Channel on a small boat this year so far – a huge increase compared to the first six months of last year.
In 2024, just under 37,000 migrants made the crossing from France to England, with 695 dinghies arriving in Britain.
US President Donald Trump used his visit tp Scotland this week to warn of the “horrible invasion” to not just the UK, but Europe.
“On immigration you better get your act together… Or you’re not going to have Europe anymore,” he told GB News whilst in Glasgow with Sir Keir Starmer.
He added: “Some leaders have not let it happen, and they’re not getting the proper credit.
“I could name them to you right now, but I’m not going to embarrass the other ones.
“But stop, this immigration is killing Europe.”
The RNLI is the largest lifeboat service operating around the coasts of the UK and Ireland – they have more than 400 lifeboats across 238 stations.
The charity is based in Poole, Dorset, and was founded in 1824. It is principally funded by legacies, 65%, and donations, 30%.