Priti Patel says migrant crisis 'will take time to fix' as 25k reach UK

22 November 2021, 19:35 | Updated: 22 November 2021, 20:22

Priti Patel clashes with Nick Thomas-Symonds over migrant crisis

By Patrick Grafton-Green

Priti Patel has defended her efforts to tackle the migrant crisis as the number of Channel crossings soar.

Amid accusations of "empty rhetoric and broken promises", the Home Secretary told MPs: "This problem will take time to fix and... there is no silver bullet."

It comes as new analysis showed the number of people who have made the dangerous journey in small boats this year is now three times the total for the whole of 2020.

READ MORE: Migrant crisis: New law must 'close the loophole, break the business model', Zahawi says

READ MORE: Migrant crisis: 'Exasperated' Boris Johnson orders review amid failure to stop crossings

During questions in the House of Commons, Labour's shadow Home Secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds said Ms Patel had "repeatedly made pledges that the route across the Channel will be unviable, but as usual with this government it is all empty rhetoric and broken promises".

"The Home Secretary has blamed everyone but herself," he added.

He pointed out that "the Government has already spent over £200 million of taxpayers' money on deals with the French authorities that are not working".

Ms Patel's proposed Nationality and Borders Bill was "not worthy of the support of the opposition" as it "breaches the refugee convention, reduces protections for victims of modern slavery and will not help the situation in the Channel", he said.

Nick Ferrari: What grade would you give Priti Patel?

He accused her of losing "control of this dangerous situation".

The Home Secretary dismissed some of his comments as "nonsense" and accused Labour of always standing up for "unlimited migration".

She insisted the Government was working on a long-term plan which would address concerns.

On the proposed Bill, she said: "The long-term solution to breaking the model, to reforming the asylum system, to deterring illegal migration, addressing the underlying pull factors of the UK's asylum system, it will introduce a one-stop appeal process... it'll ensure that asylum claims can be heard offshore in a third country."

She told MPs: "This problem will take time to fix and that there is no silver bullet. The only solution is wholesale reform of our asylum system."

Polling specialist explains migrant crisis impact on PM

"This is a whole-of-Government effort, there is no single solution to fixing a global migration crisis," she added.

At least 886 people succeeded in reaching the UK on Saturday, bringing the total for the year to more than 25,600, according to analysis of official Home Office data.

Small boat arrivals in 2021 now stand at more than three times the figure for the whole of 2020, when 8,417 people crossed the Dover Strait.

A task force led by minister Steve Barclay has been drafted in to support efforts to stem the rising number of people arriving on Britain's shores.

However, despite the increasing numbers of small boat arrivals, the UK continues to see far fewer boat arrivals and asylum claims than many of its European counterparts.

More Latest News

See more More Latest News

Palma is on lockdown amid warnings of heavy rain

Majorca on lockdown as tourist hotspot faces flooding horror after storm kills more than 200

UK GP visiting senior woman at home

Care homes and GPs could face closure under Labour tax plans, health leaders warn

Rebekah Vardy 'threatens to reignite war with Coleen Rooney'

Rebekah Vardy launches appeal against Wagatha Christie £1.8m costs ruling

Alexandra Palace Hosts Its Annual Fireworks Display Ahead Of Bonfire Night

Bonfire night 2024 forecast: What will the weather be like for fireworks night?

Darrian Williams

Two teen boys found guilty after 16-year-old stabbed to death by masked attackers in Bristol park

Westminster Protest

'Betrayed' farmers to protest over Labour's inheritance tax raid - as Chancellor insists changes are 'fair'

Police crime scene tape UK

Six teenagers arrested after 13-year-old girl left with life-threatening injuries in East Yorkshire stabbing

Israel claims to have killed a high-ranking member of Hamas

Israel 'eliminates' one of Hamas' last high-ranking officials

Prince Andrew, Duke of York and Prince Charles, Prince of Wales attend a Service of Thanksgiving to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee

King Charles 'finally cuts Prince Andrew off' as he 'axes Duke's annual £1m allowance'

Claw hammer-wielding public schoolboy who attacked sleeping students and teacher handed life sentence

Pictured: Public schoolboy, 17, who attacked sleeping students and teacher with hammers he kept 'for zombie apocalypse'

Emergency and rescue personnel work at the site where a concrete outdoor roof of a train station collapsed in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad

Train station canopy collapses in Serbia, killing 8 people in horror accident, with more victims still trapped in rubble

The passengers was fined £48 despite their bag fitting.

Air passenger shames easyJet on TikTok after he was charged £48 for carry-on bag that fit perfectly into size checker

Gabriel Silvera and  Dragos Carabineanu

Thug kills father with one punch after being asked for a cigarette outside Tube station

File photo dated 26/07/24 of Ben Stokes. Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler, England’s Test and limited-overs captains respectively, have each signed new two-year central contracts. Issue date: Thursday October 31, 2024.

Man arrested after home of England cricket captain Ben Stokes raided by masked burglars

Claw hammer-wielding public schoolboy who attacked sleeping students and teacher handed life sentence

Hammer-wielding public schoolboy who attacked two sleeping students and a teacher named

Tube strikes have been called off

Tube strikes called off after significantly improved pay offer, union announces