Rishi Sunak is still confident he can deliver on his pledge to “stop the boats” despite a record start to 2024 for migrant Channel crossings, Downing Street said.
Small boat arrivals passed 5,000 by the end of March for the first time ever this year despite Mr Sunak’s pledge, made in January 2023, to stop the crossings.
Asked whether the Prime Minister was still confident of meeting his pledge, a No 10 spokeswoman said: “Yes, as we have said before the Easter recess, the most important thing that we can do to fundamentally break the model of the criminal gangs is to get our Rwanda partnership up and running.
“So, we want to see that happen and get flights off the ground, and we know the impact that a successful deterrent can have, but at the same time we also continue to work with partners to build on the progress that we saw last year with reduction by a third on the previous year.”
The Government’s flagship Rwanda Bill, which it hopes will pave the way for deportation flights to finally take off, is nearing the end of its passage through Parliament. Ministers want flights to start this spring.
The total number of arrivals so far in 2024 is up by almost a third on the same point in 2023, when 3,793 migrants had reached the UK in small boats by March 31.
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