It looks like successive Tory home secretaries are trailblazing on migration as Olaf Scholz has just announced the German government will “examine” a Rwanda-style policy of processing migrant applications abroad. The pledge comes as a result of a late-night crisis meeting with regional leaders to hammer out a harder migration framework. Austria has already signed a “migration and security agreement” last week with the UK to co-operate on offshoring schemes. While pearl-clutchers gasp at the Tories’ ‘inhumanity’ on Twitter, European governments are taking the UK’s lead…

We’re not even done with August, and already it’s set the annual record as the month with the most Channel crossings. So far, 5,283 migrants were detected in the Channel this month, with three days of data still to be released. This makes August the worst month on record since Rishi pledged to stop the boats, beating the previous total of 3,299 by some 40%. The previous record was broken… last month.

This isn’t the only recent migration number which will upset maths-loving Rishi. August also saw the highest individual day of illegal migration, with 755 people detected just weeks ago – during his ‘small boats week’. Sunak doesn’t have long to turn the ship around.

More migrants have been detected crossing the channel in the first 16 days of August than any month from January to May. 444 migrants were detected making Channel crossings yesterday, bringing the total for August so far to 2508. Channel crossings didn’t reach higher than 2,153 in each of the first five months of the year…

So far, June has been the month with the most illegal migration recorded in 2023, with 3,824 migrants detected. You don’t need Rishi’s maths ability to see that August is on pace to beat that record…

The EU has rebuffed Rishi Sunak’s efforts to secure a deal which would see illegal immigrants returned to France. The government is keen to revive the Dublin Agreement, which allows EU member states to return refugees, as a post-Brexit deterrent for Channel crossings. However an EU official this year told one of the UK’s top security advisers that a deal was off the table after Rishi’s initial efforts to secure a deal with France specifically were previously ruled out. A UK government spokesman said they “remain open to working with the EU to take forward negotiations on a UK-EU returns deal”. On small boats, they’re clearly not rowing in the same direction…

The government’s ‘small boats week’ has gone from bad to worse. Just days after the government celebrated getting the first migrants onboard the barge, the boat has had to be evacuated following the detection of legionella bacteria in its water supply. This all comes after a record day of small boat crossings as the total number of illegal migrants detected in the Channel has topped 100,000. A Home Office spokesman confirmed:

“Environmental samples from the water system on the Bibby Stockholm have shown levels of legionella bacteria which require further investigation… As a precautionary measure, all 39 asylum seekers who arrived on the vessel this week are being disembarked while further assessments are undertaken… No individuals on board have presented with symptoms of Legionnaires’”.

That’s another £20,000 in daily operating costs down the legionella-infected drain…

New figures, published yesterday by the Home Office, suggest Rishi might have an easier time achieving his promise to “stop the boats” than anticipated. Following the announcement of a fast-track removal scheme for Albanians late last year, just 29 Albanians were detected entering the country illegally in the first quarter of 2023. For context, 500 have been returned since the deal came into force, and around 15,000 made the trip last year. Sunak seems to be learning the ropes…

Afghans made up the largest portion of the 3,793 migrants, comprising around 24%. To put the latest figure into context, 45,755 arrived in the UK by small boats last year alone. Whilst today’s debt figures suggest he’s in choppy waters with his third pledge, if Rishi continues like this, achieving his small boats promise might be smoother sailing than expected. Time will tell…