Join EU migration pact to tackle small boats, says Ed Davey

The Liberal Democrats say taking part in the scheme would "destroy the business model" of gangs arranging Channel crossings. The agreement, which came into force in June, aims to speed up the asylum process, increase the number of irregular migrants returned to their home countries and spread responsibility for asylum seekers across the EU. Sir Ed argues that signing up to the pact would allow the UK to return asylum seekers to the first EU country they entered, thereby "destroying the business model" of the gangs behind the crossings. Labour said the government's efforts to work with European countries to tackle small boat crossings were "bearing fruit". A Labour spokesperson said more than 47,000 crossings had been prevented in two years and 70,000 people with no right to be in the UK had been removed. "There's more to do and that will only happen by working in collaboration with the EU," the spokesperson added. So far this year, more than 14,000 people have arrived in the UK by small boat - a fall of 43% compared to the previous year. The EU's new pact, which was nearly 10 years in the making, introduces mandatory screening and an updated database to track those arriving in the bloc. Under the rules, EU nations must take in migrants from those member states that see the highest number of arrivals - such as Italy and Greece - or instead provide extra funding or resources. Inside secret police warehouse as Germany targets small boats gangs Track UK's latest migration numbers - net migration, visas, asylum and small boats Joining the agreement would require the UK to accept some asylum seekers from the EU. However, the Liberal Democrats argue numbers would be lower than those currently coming to the UK by small boat and that they would be screened before entering the country. The party says the scheme would save British taxpayers money, with the cost of participating - around £100m a year - amounting to a fraction of the £5bn spent on a "failing asylum system". Sir Ed said: "We have a plan that would finally end the small boats crisis: a pact with every EU country that will allow us to return people who come over the Channel, taking away the major pull factor that [Reform UK leader Nigel] Farage and co created and destroying the business model of the criminal gangs." Like the Liberal Democrats, some Labour politicians have made the argument that Brexit led to an increase in small boat crossings.

Reform UK has previously dismissed such claims as "complete misinformation", arguing that EU membership "did nothing to make it easier to return asylum seekers". The EU pact replaces previous agreements - including the Dublin Regulation which allowed countries to return asylum seekers to the EU country they initially arrived in. But the protocol had been criticised for placing a disproportionate burden on countries receiving the bulk of the arrivals. The new so-called solidarity mechanism creates a pool of about 30,000 asylum seekers to be redistributed across the 27 member states. Instead of accepting asylum seekers, participating countries could instead choose to pay €20,000 (£17,000) per person not taken. Arrivals must be registered, with identity checks to prevent those who pose security or public health risks from entering the EU undetected. People aged six and above would have their biometric data collected, with information - such as fingerprints - stored on the Eurodac database. The UK government has previously said it would like to regain access to the database, something it lost following Brexit. Joining the pact could prove tricky for the UK and would require unanimous approval from all EU states. The government would also have to pass new laws to implement the pact and could have to standardise its procedures with the EU bloc. Tap the questions below How many people cross the English Channel in small boats? Between 1 January and 8 August 2026, a total of 14,819 people crossed the English Channel by small boat from France. This was down by 43% on the same period the previous year.

These crossings have become the most common way for people to be detected entering the UK illegally since 2020. Nearly all those who arrive by small boat claim asylum. Under international law, this means they are allowed to stay in the country while their asylum application is considered. Small boat arrivals made up 42% of asylum applications between April 2025 to March 2026. Boats that arrived in the UK from 9 August 2025 to 8 August 2026 carried an average of 67 people. This has more than doubled since 2021. Experts say overcrowding in boats makes crossings riskier . At least 84 people died while attempting to cross the Channel in 2024, according to the United Nations (UN). When looking at the scale of small boats crossings, the number of these arrivals is about 5% of the size of total immigration into the UK from January 2025 to December 2025. The government has pledged to “smash the gangs” behind these crossings in order to reduce the numbers. People from Eritrea accounted for 18% of all arrivals from April 2025 to March 2026.

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