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Migrants attempting to sail to Britain from Belgian beaches for the first time, in an attempt to avoid French police patrols

Authorities were called after a small boat carrying migrants capsized - AFP
Authorities were called after a small boat carrying migrants capsized - AFP

Migrants are attempting to sail to Britain from Belgian beaches for the first time, in an attempt to avoid French police patrols.

The move indicates a change in tactics by smuggling gangs, who have historically operated in northern France, with one local official calling the development “shocking”.

On Tuesday, Belgian police were called after a boat carrying 14 people capsized in poor weather. The group of Afghan and Iraqi migrants, including two children, had to swim back to the beach at De Panne, a town on the border with France. Eight of them ran away and have not been found.

Bram Degrieck, the mayor of De Panne told the Telegraph that they were lucky to be alive.

“This is the first time we have been confronted in real life with this problem. Where people have tried to go on their own little boat from a beach here to the UK. It is a sign of absolute desperation,” he said.

Belgian fire services on the beach  - Credit: KURT DESPLENTER/Belga/AFP
A boat carrying 14 migrants capsized and they were forced to swim to shore Credit: KURT DESPLENTER/Belga/AFP

The UK and France set up a £6 million joint programme to combat people smuggling and small boat crossings last year, which was boosted by Home Secretary Priti Patel in October.

Assets on the ground were doubled to provide 24/7 cover of the beaches in northern France, designed to ensure that boats are stopped before they can leave the shore.

Despite this, some 229 people reached the UK in December alone, bringing the total for the year to more than 1,850. Only 125 people were sent back to France.

Yesterday, another 21 migrants were intercepted by Border Force after crossing the world’s busiest shipping lane in two small boats. They were the first group to reach the UK this year. Six more were rescued at sea by a French patrol boat.

six migrants in a boat - Credit: Premar Manche
Six migrants were picked up by French authorities on Tuesday morning Credit: Premar Manche

But it is the new Belgian frontier that is worrying officials on both sides of the Channel.

The MP for Dover and Deal, Natalie Elphicke told The Telegraph: “The news today of the near tragedy where 14 people could have drowned off the coast of Belgium is a wake up call that it is time to bring this migrant crisis to an end for good.

“We must save lives and prevent people being mercilessly exploited by people traffickers and organised criminal gangs. That’s why returning people back to safety across the channel is the most sensible and compassionate thing to do.

“We saw during the crisis of the Calais Jungle that when it was finally dismantled there was some displacement of migrants up the road to Dunkirk and beyond. It seems that firmer action is at last being taken by the French authorities to prevent so many small boats leaving France.

“However, the Belgian authorities must be vigilant that their country does not now become the new organised crime base for people smuggling.”

Mr Degrieck said that his community needed support from the Belgian government.

“We are confronted on a daily basis with refugees trying to get to Belgian ports because we are a border town so are on the smugglers route from France to Belgian ports,” he said.

“But our beaches do not have structural controls. There is no surveillance on Belgian beaches.

“I don’t want to get into big political discussions but I think we as a local community count on the Federal government to support the actions that we think we have to do on our beaches.

“We have to be staffed, we have to be equipped to make sure that this doesn’t happen again.”