Fears of increased small boat Channel crossings as UK-French deal nears end

New agreement delayed amid home secretary Shabana Mahmood’s demands for more interceptions of dinghies A renewed deal between the UK and France to stop small boat Channel crossings has not yet been signed, with a day to go before the current one expires, raising questions about whether people smugglers will be able to act unimpeded from later this week. Rishi Sunak and Emmanuel Macron announced the previous £468m deal on 10 March 2023, weeks before it came into force. The UK pays two-thirds of the cost of policing France’s northern border and the current agreement expires on Tuesday. Discussions on it began last July at the 37th UK-France summit and British officials travelled to Paris last week for another round of talks. The Times reported that the new agreement with France had been delayed because the home secretary, Shabana Mahmood, was trying to get France to increase interceptions of dinghies. The Home Office said it was trying to add “flexibility and innovation” to the agreement. The department said it had prevented 40,000 crossing attempts since Labour came to office. However, 2025 was the second highest year on record for small boat crossings since they began in 2018, with