Stark new ad campaign will target misinformation from criminal gangs on social media

 One picture shows a perilously over-manned dinghy heading for the distinctive Dover coast – the other, a solitary migrant staring forlornly through metal mesh.

The aim of Priti Patel’s new advertising campaign, to be launched on Friday, is to do as much as possible to counter the insinuations of the criminal gangs trafficking people to the Channel that the journey across the Straits of Dover is safe and will lead to a new life of security and prosperity in Britain.

The adverts – which will be directed at migrants in Northern France and Belgium on Facebook and Instagram in their own languages – can be summed up as: ‘It’s extremely dangerous to try to get here, and if you make it you could be sent to Rwanda anyway.’

The campaign has been timed to coincide with the peak summer months for small boat crossings.

A Whitehall source said: ‘The ads will address the false promises of a 100 per cent safe journey or a private boat when, in reality, migrants are forced on to overcrowded dinghies held together with tape, and given highly absorbent lifejackets, if any. The campaign will include information on possible relocation to Rwanda or another safe country, the dangers of Channel crossings, the realities of illegal arrival in the UK and information on safe alternatives.

The adverts will appear on Facebook and Instagram in migrants own languages

‘It is essential for people to have accurate information when considering life-threatening and illegal attempts to cross the Channel.’

The source added that the UK’s partnership with Rwanda ‘will help break the business model of criminal gangs and prevent loss of life’.