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Second-highest boat migrant numbers in 2025
Western Mail
|January 02, 2026
A TOTAL of 41,472 migrants arrived in the UK in 2025 after crossing the English Channel - the second-highest annual figure on record.
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The Home Office confirmed yesterday that no migrants made the journey on New Year's Eve, continuing a run of no crossings over the festive period.
It means the overall number of arrivals last year finished 9% below the all-time high of 45,774 in 2022.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said Sir Keir Starmer's plan to “smash the gangs” had been “a complete disaster” and the “one in, one out” deal with France is a “farce”.
“The numbers coming over are huge,” he said.
“Many of the young men that have arrived last year will do us great harm.”
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said pulling out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) is the only way to take effective action.
This story is from the January 02, 2026 edition of Western Mail.
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