90 people cross the English Channel in small boats on Christmas Day

Ninety people crossed the English Channel in two small boats on Christmas Day.

So far this year, more than 45,000 migrants have made the dangerous crossing from France to England.

According to the Ministry of Defence, in 2021 there were significantly fewer at almost 28,500.

Just two weeks ago, four people died and 39 others were rescued after a migrant boat got into trouble.

Video footage showed the terrible weather conditions the migrants faced as they attempted to cross into the UK.

At least 67 people were rescued trying to cross the sea on Christmas Day last year.

MORE: Migrants who died in Channel crossing tragedy not yet identified, inquest hears

MORE: 50 migrants rescued from second sinking boat same night, four died in canal

Border Force agents were pictured taking the groups to Dover in the early hours of Christmas Day.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has identified the small boat crisis as a priority for his presidency.

A government spokesman said: “No one should risk their life by undertaking dangerous and illegal travel.

“We will go further to crack down on the gangs pushing this forward and use every means at our disposal to prevent illegal migration and disrupt the people smugglers’ business model.”

The people who arrived on Sunday were taken to the Western Jet Foil processing center in Dover, the ministry confirmed.

Earlier this month, Mr Sunak announced a series of measures to deal with the problem, including 700 staff for a new unit to monitor small boats crossing the Channel.

He also pledged more staff to help clear some of the UK’s backlog of asylum cases by the end of next year.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, Visit our news page.