High levels of illegal migration are putting “unbearable pressure” on the UK’s housing and public services and it cannot continue, Robert Jenrick said this morning. 

The immigration minister also said the small boats crisis was “risking community cohesion”. 

He made the comments after he announced yesterday that the Government will close 50 asylum hotels over the next three months, with more to follow after that. 

Mr Jenrick told Times Radio today: “You have to stop the boats. You have got to reduce the amount of illegal migration into this country because it is placing unbearable pressure on our housing, our public services and risking community cohesion. 

“As you say, rightly, we have been extremely generous as a country. Since 2015 we have granted over 530,000 humanitarian visas to Ukrainians, Hong Kongers, Syrians, Afghans and those from elsewhere in the world. 

“That is the largest number of people coming into the country on humanitarian grounds in our modern history. 

“It is just not possible for us to keep supporting such large numbers of illegal migrants and that is why we are taking the steps that we are to deter people from coming to this country with important policies like the Rwanda policy and that is why we are working hard to smash the people smuggling gangs and destroy the business model that they operate.”

You can follow the latest updates below and join the conversation in the comments section here.