Britain and France clash over Reform's proposal for military intervention

A bitter political row has erupted over the best way to address the small boats crisis, with Reform UK clashing with both the French government and the Conservative Party over its proposals for what it describes as the largest military operation since the Second World War to halt Channel crossings. The controversy comes as Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who has overseen more than 2,000 small boat arrivals since taking office just two weeks ago, has begun a family holiday, with Downing Street confirming he would take a break from his day-to-day duties from today, though No10 has not disclosed his destination. Reform leader Nigel Farage insisted that his party's "Operation Fortress" plan would mean "no more boats" heading to Britain within a fortnight if his party won power, but the proposals have drawn sharp criticism from France, which has warned that any such intervention would violate its sovereignty and international law.

The French interior ministry issued a robust response to Mr Farage's proposals, stating: "This would be a violation of French sovereignty as well as a violation of maritime and international law." The ministry also noted that, as part of existing measures with the UK, the number of crossings was down in 2026. Mr Farage, however, compared his plans to those of former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott in 2013, when he clamped down on border crossings and pulled illegal migrants back to Indonesia, insisting that his proposals complied with international laws and were humane. He warned that many small boat migrants "wish us harm or do us harm" and reaffirmed his party's commitment to leaving the European Convention on Human Rights, which he complained was preventing deportations.

The Reform leader's intervention came as a YouGov survey found that only 13 per cent of Britons believe French authorities are making a genuine effort to help stop migrants, while 62 per cent said they were not. Mr Farage said there were "very big upsides" to co-operating with the Reform plan, arguing that "life is now hell" for many in France affected by the migrant route, with residents experiencing crime, litter, vandalism, gang violence, stabbings and shootings. He added: "Dealing with this problem would be a great, great relief to the people of northern France." However, the proposals have been met with scepticism from the Conservative Party, with Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp stating: "Reform UK have no detailed plan nor funding to back up their latest gimmick. They can't explain how they will properly fund the military and how they would disembark illegal immigrants in France without French cooperation."

The row comes as figures show 14,000 migrants have crossed this year, including 2,000 since Mr Burnham came to power, with more than 200,000 migrants having landed on Britain's shores over the past eight years. Britain is giving £1 billion to France to help reduce Channel crossings by paying for more officers to patrol beaches, as well as for more drones and helicopters. Labour has insisted that illegal crossings are down by almost 50 per cent from last year and that almost 60 per cent of attempted crossings have been stopped since the Government came to power, though recent reports suggest that hostile actors, including the Iranians, are continuing to exploit this method of UK entry as a way of funnelling extremists.

Downing Street has defended the Prime Minister's decision to take a break, noting that he would remain in direct contact with officials during his holiday and is due to return to a summer tour of the UK towards the end of August. Meanwhile, Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh told LBC Radio that safe and legal routes to deal with the migrant crisis would be opened later this year. The debate over migration has become a major international concern in recent days, with more than 60,000 Moroccan migrants having invaded the Spanish North African territory of Ceuta in a single day. Mr Burnham offered no specific plan to bring back control of Britain's borders during a visit to Dover on Sunday, with Downing Street claiming that when the Navy was deployed in 2022, there was no reduction in small boat crossings, adding that "the Royal Navy is already tackling many threats, including monitoring any Russian warships operating near our shores, protecting our waters and our critical national infrastructure."