First small boat migrants detained under 'one-in, one-out' treaty with France

The first small boat migrants have been detained under the new “one-in, one-out” UK-France migrant treaty on Thursday.

The returns deal will see those who cross the Channel in small boats exchanged with France for asylum seekers in a “controlled and legal” way.

In exchange, migrants in France can apply to come to the UK on a “one-to-one exchange basis” – subject to strict criteria and security checks being met.

The scheme will be reviewed to tackle any issues as the scale and speed of returns increase.

Home secretary Yvette Cooper would not give details about how many migrants had been detained and said the Government was prepared to resist any legal challenges aimed at preventing their removal to France.

She said: “The transfers to immigration removal centres are under way as we speak, so we won’t provide operational details at this point that criminal gangs can simply use and exploit.

“But no-one should be in any doubt: anyone who arrives from now on is eligible for immediate detention and return.”

Cooper said the first migrants could be sent back within weeks.

“The pilot has now begun, so the first migrants who have arrived on the small boats are now in detention. We will then swiftly make the referrals to France and that process will now start to be able to return people to France,” she said.

The Home Office has said those who arrive in the UK on a small boat will be held in removal centres pending return.

Starmer previously said “hard-headed aggressive action” was needed on all fronts to “break” the migrant gangs’ business model, secure UK borders, and show that attempting to reach the UK by small boat “will only end in failure, detention, and return”.

The prime minister has not said how the scheme will select the individuals who will be returned to France, and the Home Office has not confirmed how many people the deal would see returned.

However, Le Monde reported that the two nations reportedly agreed to exchange 50 people per week under the treaty. Starmer did not deny the figure.

If the numbers are anything like the 50 reportedly being agreed on, the deal will result in the return of only a fraction of the 21,000 people who have made the Channel crossing so far in 2025, a record for this point in a year.

The deal will also not see the net migration figure fall on its own, but the hope is that it will serve as a deterrent for more people hoping to make the trip by boat.