Border Force vessels brought several people wearing life jackets ashore in Dover on Wednesday, as crossings continued amid favorable conditions at sea. There were no crossings on Monday or Tuesday.

The latest provisional figures from the UK Home Office show that the number of migrants arriving by small boat so far this year has already exceeded the 2023 total.

As of Sunday, there had been 29,867 in 2024, compared to 29,437 in all of 2023.

As more ships continue to arrive in the UK, it is thought this year’s total will exceed 30,000. This is down from the record of 45,774 arrivals in 2022.

The Home Office has pledged to “stop at nothing” to dismantle people smuggling gangs that organize small boat crossings.

A spokesperson said: “We all want to put an end to dangerous small boat crossings, which threaten lives and undermine our border security.

“Human trafficking gangs don’t care if the vulnerable people they exploit live or die, as long as they pay.”

A recent BBC undercover investigation exposed a group of people smugglers in Germany who charged €15,000 (£12,500) for a “package” to cross the English Channel.

The package included an inflatable boat and 60 life jackets, which the smugglers said they kept in secret warehouses to hide from German police.

Enver Solomon, chief executive of the charity Refugee Council, has said it was “vital” that the government did “everything possible” to ensure refugees no longer had to put their lives at risk.

He added: “We must not forget that those making the dangerous journeys across the English Channel are desperate men, women and children fleeing persecution and war in countries like Afghanistan and Sudan, and simply seeking safety and a free future. scary”.