The three-year agreement, worth around £475 million and signed by former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and French President Emmanuel Macron in 2023, aimed to combat migration across the English Channel by increasing law enforcement patrols along northern beaches in France. The original deal included commitments to deploy more French beach controls and construct a new detention center, but the construction has been stalled by planning issues. The UK previously offered to extend the deal until 2027 if the detention center was built, with the Home Office agreeing to help fund the facility in hopes of increasing French authorities' capacity to detain migrants before they attempt to cross the Channel.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is adamant that the detention facility must be constructed for a deal to progress, and she favors a 'payment-by-results' model where Britain would pay proportionately based on the number of successful migrant interceptions. According to Home Office data, the number of interceptions has fallen from more than 50% in 2023 to 37% this year, with 4,897 migrants attempting to cross the Channel this year and only 1,797 successfully intercepted by French authorities. Reform UK's Zia Yusuf said his party would demand a 'full refund' from the French.
Tory and Labour governments have paid £700 million so far, and the boats keep coming in record numbers. The French are laughing at us. Reform would scrap the deal and demand a full refund from the French.
A total of 36,816 people arrived in the UK via small boats in 2024, up from 41,472 last year, prompting the government to plan a larger crackdown on illegal migration and asylum. It remains unclear whether France will agree to build the detention center in Dunkirk or how the 'payment-by-results' model would be implemented, and the specific planning issues stalling construction have not been detailed.