Migrants attempt Channel crossing ahead of new French policing measures (Image: Getty)

       July is on course to be the busiest month ever for migrant Channel crossings, as ruthless smuggling gangs entice would-be asylum seekers with cut-price “summer deals” reports The Telegraph.

       Already, 2,378 people have made the treacherous journey to Britain in small boats in just the first 12 days of this month – a pace that would smash all previous records if it continues. The surge marks a 57 per cent rise on the same period last year, when 1,711 people crossed.

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       So far in 2025, 22,360 migrants – largely from the Middle East, East Africa and Vietnam – have arrived on UK shores. The Telegraph’s analysis of Border Force data suggests July could see 6,143 crossings in total, setting a new monthly record which Reform leader Nigel Farage has said is down to French police not only failing to act, but behaving like a "taxi service" for small boat migrants heading to the UK.

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       Smuggling gangs, now described as “increasingly professionalised”, are targeting specific nationalities such as Eritreans and Albanians with offers of passage for as little as ￡2,000 – discounts of up to 50 per cent.

       Social media platforms are being used to advertise these offers directly to migrants, sometimes even offering special rates to those prepared to steer the dinghies themselves.

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       Dr Peter Walsh, of The Migration Observatory, said prices are “dynamic”, with deals struck for individuals claiming boating experience. “There was this big increase in Eritreans crossing… anecdotal evidence suggested they had offered a lower rate that made it more affordable,” he said.

       Smugglers have also changed their methods, launching pre-inflated “taxi boats” from inland waterways and canals that feed into the sea, allowing them to evade French police. The boats often hug the coastline, picking up migrants waiting in the water out of reach of authorities.

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       In Gravelines, a French seaside town tied to the River Aa, The Telegraph observed two such launches this week. Local officials estimate as many as 300 migrants can be smuggled through there in a single day.

       According to Dr Walsh, enforcement agencies are at a disadvantage. “Law enforcement has to follow the rules of the law and that is a substantial disadvantage… they are highly adaptable,” he said.

       Smugglers have also been inflating boats in forests and dunes, pushing them out through inlets and rivers before law enforcement can intervene.

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