One group were brought to Dover aboard a lifeboat following an incident in the Channel on Sunday, it was said. Record numbers of migrants have made the perilous journey in small boats so far this year, with nearly 6,000 reaching the UK in the first six months of 2021. The total figure for 2020 was 8,417. But that could easily be overtaken in two months if the number of crossings seen last summer is repeated.

       The 676 migrants intercepted between Thursday and Sunday eclipsed the 531 who attempted the treacherous journey in January and February combined.

       The data emerged as Home Secretary Priti Patel announced stiffer jail sentences for migrants to prevent “asylum shopping”.

       Ms Patel said: “For too long, our broken asylum system has lined the pockets of the vile criminal gangs who cheat the system.

       “This isn’t fair to the vulnerable people who need protection or the British public who pay for it. It’s time to act.”

       Tougher penalties for migrants and people smugglers are part of the Nationality and Borders Bill due for its first reading in the House of Commons today.

       Ms Patel added: “The Nationality and Borders Bill contains vital measures to fix the UK’s broken asylum system. Our new plan for immigration is fair but firm.

       “We will welcome people through safe and legal routes while preventing abuse of the system, cracking down on illegal entry and the criminality associated with it.”

       Ruthless human traffickers who take advantage of migrants will also face harsher punishments.

       Clandestine Channel Threat Commander Dan O’Mahoney said: “We are seeing an unacceptable rise in dangerous and unnecessary small boat crossings.

       “The Government continues to target the criminal gangs who are responsible for these illegal crossings at every level with intelligence and surveillance, and the joint work means we have doubled the number of police officers in France.”