More clashes in UK over migrant boats
Hundreds of protesters clashed with police in Portsmouth, England on Sunday night after a dinghy carrying about 140 migrants arrived off the nation's southeast coast following one of the longest small-boat crossings of the English Channel seaway from France ever recorded.
It was the weekend's second major anti-migration demonstration in England, after protests disrupted operations at Kent's Port of Dover, which is further east along the south coast, on Saturday.
In Portsmouth, which is in the county of Hampshire, around 500 demonstrators, including far-right activists, blocked roads in a bid to prevent the asylum seekers being taken to a processing center in Kent, with items thrown at officers as crowds chanted "stop the boats".
The vessel's arrival off the English coast, in the Solent tidal strait between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight, prompted a major air-and-sea response, with aircraft and lifeboats sent to the location. Hampshire Police confronted protesters who blocked the roads in Portsmouth, and announced a dispersal order was in effect, warning that anyone who failed to comply could be arrested.
The protest was finally broken up in the early hours of Monday, and officials said the asylum seekers who arrived on Sunday were now being processed.
The government condemned the protesters' conduct, noting many were masked and dressed in black. A spokesperson said: "We condemn the intimidating and thuggish behaviour we are seeing tonight. The right to peaceful protest is fundamental to our democracy, but it must never cross a line into disorder. We thank the emergency services who are working to safely manage this situation."
In a social media post, Conservative member of Parliament for Isle of Wight East, Joe Robertson, highlighted how unusual it was to see a migrant boat arrive in this area.
He wrote: "Extremely concerning to see an illegal migrant crossing this far west. We don't know if this migrant boat was headed for the Isle of Wight but I'll be contacting the Home Office first thing. We need to know exactly what happened and if new routes are being used for mega-dinghies by people smugglers."
The migrants' route of around 110 kilometers from Normandy, France — where the dinghy is believed to have launched — would be among the longest small boat crossings on record, reported The Times newspaper.
Donna Jones, the Hampshire and Isle of Wight police and crime commissioner, warned it could become a "significant issue" if people smuggling networks change their routes.
She told BBC Radio 4's Today program: "We have hundreds of miles of coastline across southern England and if Dover is no longer the destination of choice, and instead there is going to be a spread across southern England, this is a significant issue for the government."
According to statistics published by the British government, since about 2020, small-boat Channel crossings have become a leading route for unauthorized entry to Britain, with most arrivals subsequently claiming asylum.
In the 12 months to June 2026, officials recorded roughly 33,000 small-boat arrivals, accounting for about 88 percent of all detected unauthorized entries — broadly in line with levels seen two years earlier.
The Home Office said in August that joint UK-France operations have prevented more than 48,000 attempted crossings and seized around 1,100 boats and engines since the current Labour Party government took office in July 2024.
"We are making progress, with the number of small boat crossings down this year and the lowest number recorded for the month of July since 2020," said a spokesperson.
"But we must go further, which is why we have signed a payment-by-results deal with the French to put 40 percent more boots on the ground on French beaches."
According to information from the French authorities, units funded by the UK prevented 185 small boat crossing attempts between April 27 and Aug 2.
jonathan@mail.chinadailyuk.com
