Channel crossings to Britain ‘are being plotted in Germany by criminal trafficking gangs’, UK claims
- Asylum seekers massing in country as new staging post for Channel crossings
- Organised crime groups are also using German sites to store dinghies
- Six out of ten migrants arrive in France only on day they attempt their crossing
Germany is becoming a hub for migrants attempting to reach Britain, it emerged last night.
Asylum seekers are massing in the country as a new staging post for Channel crossings masterminded by people-smuggling gangs.
Organised crime groups are also using German sites to store dinghies and other small boats used to attempt crossings, sources said.
Six out of ten migrants arrive in France only on the day they attempt their crossing, travelling there through Belgium and the Netherlands.
A UK government source described Germany as ‘the established hub for criminal trafficking gangs’ in Europe.
It is also a key location in the criminals’ supply chains, where boats, life jackets and other equipment is sourced for Channel crossings, they added.
Germany is becoming a hub for migrants attempting to reach Britain, it emerged last night. Asylum seekers are massing in the country as a new staging post for Channel crossings masterminded by people-smuggling gangs
This week Home Secretary Priti Patel attacked the EU’s open borders policies for allowing migrants free access across the Continent, and called on Brussels to act.
UK officials are increasingly dissatisfied with the French government’s response to the crisis.
During the last major Channel surge – which saw the ‘Jungle’ camp spring up at Calais in 2015 – France sent 3,500 of its tough Compagnies Republicaines de Securite officers to the area.
By comparison, the UK’s latest £54million handout to Emmanuel Macron’s government has seen just a couple of hundred reservist gendarmes deployed.
Organised crime groups are also using German sites to store dinghies and other small boats used to attempt crossings, sources said
British officials believe the shortfall has left the French struggling to deal with the massive numbers pushed through by gangs.
However, the French president yesterday took aim at the UK over the crisis.
He said: ‘We have the British, who oscillate between partnership and provocation. We need to further strengthen collaboration.’
The number of migrants to have crossed this month has now surpassed 4,000.
It means 23,761 people have now arrived on UK shores this year with more expected yesterday as many braved the poor conditions.