Landmark £63m Paris deal to solve migrant crossings ‘won’t fix the problem’, says Suella Braverman
A DEAL handing France £63million extra to stem the tide of Channel migrants will not work, it was claimed last night.
The warning came on the day the pact was signed — and as hundreds more asylum seekers arrived on the coast.
The cash will be dished out over six months for extra patrols — even if the French fail to stop any crossings.
It does not cover returning illegal migrants to France if they do make it to the UK, nor require the French to arrest any one they intercept.
Former Tory minister Tim Loughton, MP for East Worthing and Shoreham, said it could amount to “throwing good money after bad”.
Frank Dhersin, mayor of French coastal town Téteghem, told Times Radio: “England needs to review its policy.”
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He said it was “too much in favour of immigrants who are promised money, houses and jobs”.
And he added: “England is the most attractive country at the moment.
“Ninety per cent say, ‘We want to go to England because it’s a great country and my family is only in England’.”
Even Home Secretary Suella Braverman — who signed the Paris deal with French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin — admitted it alone will not “fix the problem”.
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It will see a 40 per cent rise in beach security, with more patrols and spy drones, and British border staff in France for the first time.
It will also attempt to cut off migrant routes “upstream” and break the grip of people smugglers at Calais.
At the G20 summit in Bali, PM Rishi Sunak refused to guarantee the deal will drive down numbers but ruled out the idea of ID cards for anyone seeking work in the UK.
Meanwhile migrants were brought to shore in Dover, after 853 arrivals were recorded on Sunday.
