Since 2018, there has been a sharp rise in people crossing the Channel in small boats. Numbers of people detected arriving in small boats have increased from around 300 in 2018 to nearly 30,000 in 2021.

The purpose of this paper is to promote research on the reasons for the increase in the rise of people crossing the Channel by small boat, to help form a firmer basis for a humane and effective policy response.

The briefing draws on interviews with key experts and stakeholders – including those with lived experience of crossing the Channel in small boats – as well as analysis of Home Office data.

Published in October 2022 by IPPR