At the conclusion of French President Emmanuel Macron's two-day state visit to the United Kingdom, which was followed by a France-UK summit on Thursday, July 10, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed that an agreement had been reached on cross-Channel migration. For the first time, the deal establishes the principle that people turned back from the UK after crossing the Channel in small boats will be returned to France.

The number of people affected is expected to be around 50 per week. This is a minimum, according to London, which has in turn committed to accepting, in the opposite direction, individuals whose nationality would almost automatically guarantee them asylum in the United Kingdom or who are eligible for family reunification.

The numbers involved remain very modest compared to the 21,000 people who have crossed the Dover Strait since the beginning of the year (a 50% increase compared to the same period in 2024). Nevertheless, the Labour leader described the agreement as "groundbreaking." "Previous governments tried and failed to secure results like this," said Starmer during a joint press conference with Macron on Thursday at Northwood, a military base in northwest London.

You have 80.6% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.