Hundreds of illegal immigrants cross Channel after three weeks of bad weather finally clears

Hundreds of illegal immigrants are crossing the English Channel for the first time in more than three weeks, after stormy conditions finally cleared overnight.

Before today, the last successful illegal crossings were on October 7, when 119 migrants arrived on two large dinghies.

Around 150 illegal migrants have either crossed or are currently crossing the Channel, with smuggling gangs attempting to launch from other locations along the French coast as well.

The short weather window is due to close in again tomorrow.

Just after 8am on Thursday, the Border Security Command vessel Contender arrived at Dover Harbour with the first batch of migrants taken from a dinghy in the middle of the Channel.

GB News counted 72, mostly young men, as they disembarked the Border Security Command vessel and were taken to the nearby migrant processing facility for health and security checks.

More than 80 other illegal immigrants are on board a so-called taxi boat, a large dinghy which is thought to have launched from a beach in Belgium earlier this morning.

The taxi boat called into a beach near Dunkirk and picked up dozens of other migrants who waded out into the water to clamber on board.

French patrols are out at several other locations along the northern coast of France, where more migrant activity has been spotted.

Those arriving today have taken the total number of migrant crossings so far this year to more than 21,000.

That figure is more than 46 per cent lower than the same point last year.

Labour claims that its partnership with France and extra patrols along many French beaches are responsible for such a dramatic drop in numbers.

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But maritime security sources say the picture is more complex, and a year of significant poor weather in the Channel has also played a part in the reduction in crossings.

In recent months, people smuggling gangs have switched up their tactics, launching much further west along the French coast to avoid enhanced police patrols around Dunkirk and Calais.

Last week, the man in charge of UK border security revealed that around 4,000 migrants are currently waiting in the two main makeshift camps in northern France, waiting on their turn to cross the Channel.

Border Security Commander Duncan Sparks told the Commons Home Affairs Committee the number was "roughly double the typical number" who would be in the camps at this time of year.

He said: "I think the French estimate at the moment is that there are almost 3,800 people between those two camps.

"Previously, it was broadly about 2,000 between them.

"There are a lot of people in the camps at the moment, which I think is bad in one respect because a lot of people are there, but it also represents the fact that the French are making it very difficult, particularly in the Dunkirk-Calais area, to get across."