UK And France Announce 'One In, One Out' Illegal Migration Returns Deal
Migrants arriving via small boats will be detained and returned to France (Alamy)
3 min read
Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron have announced a new UK-France illegal migrant returns deal as part of a joint bid to tackle small boat crossings.
Under a pilot of the policy, which Starmer said will be implemented in the "coming weeks", for every migrant who is detained and returned to France after arriving in the UK illegally, the government will accept an asylum seeker with a legitimate claim to be in Britain.
Speaking at a joint press conference in London on Thursday, Starmer said that he and the French president are determined to end the "vile trade" of people smuggling.
"There is no silver bullet here, but with a united effort, new tactics, and a new level of intent, we could finally turn the tables," the Prime Minister said.
Starmer said that the 'one in, one out' scheme will allow those seeking asylum to come to the UK via a safe route, subject to strict security checks, and would only be open to those who had not previously tried to enter the UK illegally.
The PM added that while some may question why the UK should accept any asylum seekers at all, he insisted that the country should accept "genuine" asylum seekers "because it is right that we offer a haven to those in most dire need".
"There is also something else here, something more practical, which is that we simply cannot solve a challenge like stopping the boats by acting alone and telling our allies that we won't play ball," he said.
Starmer said the scheme would show that "attempting to reach the UK by small boat will only end in failure, detention and return".
Home Office figures published last week showed that nearly 20,000 people crossed the Channel in small boats in the first half of the year, an increase of almost 50 per cent in the same period of 2024.
The press conference this afternoon marked the conclusion of Macron's three-day state visit following a bilateral summit earlier in the day.
The state visit — the first made by any French leader since 2008 — has resulted in deals being struck on defence and security and nuclear power, as well as immigration, while on Thursday the two leaders joined a meeting of the 'coalition of the willing'.
The coalition of the willing was formed in March by European leaders in a bid to defend Ukraine militarily in the event of a peace deal.
Prime Minister Starmer said at the press conference that the US had joined the coalition's meetings for the first time on Thursday.
The two leaders also announced that the coalition would have a new permanent headquarters in Paris.
In a speech to Parliament on Tuesday, Macron said that France, the UK and their European allies would "never abandon Ukraine".
