Border Force ships ordered to patrol the Channel for migrants are still in the Mediterranean
Two Border Force cutters ordered to return from the Mediterranean to patrol the English Channel are still in port in Malta and Gibraltar, and are not expected back for another two weeks.
The Home Secretary, Sajid Javid, declared a ‘major incident’ in December, as more than 300 suspected migrants landed in the UK at the end of last year, but the two ships he ordered back are undergoing "routine maintenance" and are not expected to be operational until early February - five weeks after they were sent for.
The delay has been met with dismay by MPs as as 39 more suspected migrants crossed the Channel and reached the UK in less than 24 hours over Sunday and Monday.
Dover MP Charlie Elphicke said: “It’s now getting on for a month since we were told the cutters would be brought back from the Med. Now we learn they may not return for another few weeks. That is completely unacceptable - they are needed urgently to secure our borders and protect lives.
“The most effective deterrent to people trafficking and the best way to prevent tragedy is for traffickers to know that small craft will always be intercepted and returned to France. That’s why when the Home Secretary meets his counterpart he should seek a new cross-Channel compact to put an end to these crossings.
“Any compact must include 24/7 aerial surveillance, so that any small craft setting off from the French coast will be swiftly intercepted and helped safely back to France. This crisis has gone on far too long. Urgent action is now required to bring the crisis to an end before there is a tragedy in the English Channel.”
Border Force has a total fleet of five cutters and six Coastal Patrol Vessels (CPVs). Two CPVs and two cutters, HMC Vigilant and HMC Searcher, are currently deployed in the Channel working as part of an enhanced patrol rotation.
The Home Secretary announced on 31 December that two Border Force cutters, Protector and Seeker, will be re-deployed from overseas to the Channel.
Speaking in the House of Commons today, Mr Javid said: “While we are awaiting the arrival of two cutters for early February, we have increased the presence of vessels including with help from the Royal Navy.
He added that “Aerial surveillance is already a measure that we have started deploying on the English Channel since I declared it a major incident.”
But the Telegraph has learned that while one dinghy carrying eight suspected migrants was spotted off the coast of Dover, yesterday HMS Mersey - the Navy ship being used by as an interim measure - was already heading back to Portsmouth as part of a routine changeover with another navy vessel.
HMS Mersey, which is costing the Home Office £20,000 a day, was almost directly above the Channel Tunnel at 3:34am on Monday, but despite an incident being reported at around 4am, it continued its course to Portsmouth, where it docked just after 3pm.
Mr Javid will meet his French interior minister counterpart Christophe Castaner this week to review the "action plan" agreed between the two countries after Christmas and to demand France take tougher action to ensure asylum seekers submit their claims in the first "safe" country of arrival, as expected under international rules.
It is understood the French are considering taking back some of the migrants who have already arrived in Britain in a move designed to deter others by showing they cannot be guaranteed to stay in the UK.
This comes as two more small vessels carrying a total of 23 people were collected in separate rescue missions and taken into the Port of Dover.
At approximately 11.30pm on Sunday, Border Force received notification of a RHIB containing 15 people on board off the Kent coast. HMC Vigilant and CPV Hunter were deployed and the group was transported into Dover where they were medically assessed and transferred to immigration officials for interview. There are no details regarding nationalities at this stage.
Just after 4am yesterday morning, another small boat was spotted off the coast of Dover. It was found to be travelling with eight suspected migrants, and they too were taken to shore and transferred to immigration officials for interview.
On Sunday, two dinghies made landfall on the Kent coast, at Kingsdown and Warren, with a total of eight men presenting themselves as Iranian or Iraqi.
A third boat, carrying eight men was intercepted by Border Force officials heading towards Dover and was escorted by CPV Speedwell into the port.
