Burnham vows to be ‘relentless’ on small boats after 2k migrants cross

ANDY Burnham pledged to crack down on Channel people-smuggling gangs with hundreds more crime-fighting officers. Labour says the National Crime Agency now has a record 791 officers targeting organised immigration crime, more than double the number at the start of 2025. Burnham said he believed the Home Secretary’s plans were beginning to work as numbers compared to last year were down Shabana Mahmood said there is more to be done but the Government was restoring control of Britain’s borders But it comes after a record 752 migrants crossed the Channel in a single day last week, the highest daily total of 2026, prompting huge pressure on Andy Burnham to get a grip on the crisis. The Prime Minister visited Dover’s high-tech command centre on Sunday, where officials used high-tech drones to track boats across the Channel. Sign up for the Politics newsletter Thank you! Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood also visited the NCA’s headquarters in Stratford as ministers ramped up their border crackdown. Ms Mahmood said the state had seized more than a thousand boats and engines, arrested thousands of criminals, and stopped tens of thousands of attempted crossings. She said: “There is more to be done, but this Government is restoring control at our border.” Home Office numbers show 326 migrants arrived on Saturday in four boats, bringing the number up to 2,057 since he took over from Sir Keir Starmer on July 20. Burnham said he believed the Home Secretary’s plans were beginning to work as numbers compared to last year were down. He said: “Although this is the peak period of the year for crossings, overall the number of crossings is down, the number of removals of people is up. Most read in The Sun “So, there is progress, but we both recognise that we need to do more.” But shadow home secretary Chris Philp said if Mr Burnham was serious about controlling Britain’s borders he would follow the Tories and leave the ECHR. He said: “Labour has not smashed the gangs as they promised over two years ago. “I saw for myself just last week hundreds of illegal immigrants departing a French beach while the gendarmes Shabana Mahmood is paying for stood by and did nothing. “The Conservative plan is to leave the ECHR so all illegal immigrants can be deported with a week of arrival. If Andy Burnham was serious he would do this – but he’s too weak.” Wednesday marked the busiest day for small boat crossings across the English Channel so far this year, with 752 migrants arriving in the UK. The Home Office said small boat crossings are heavily influenced by weather conditions, with numbers typically surging during the warmer summer months. Meanwhile Europe is on the edge after more than 60,000 migrants stormed a Spanish enclave – sparking calls to suspend free movement from the country. Shops have been looted, cars set on fire and the streets have been turned into an open toilet in “apocalyptic” scenes. On top of the estimated 60,000 to have entered Ceuta, another 400 crossed into Melilla, another enclave around 200 miles away. Comment now