The future of the UK-France agreement on cross-Channel migration remains uncertain after French media reports suggested the "one in, one out" deal is due to end in October. The arrangement, which allows some asylum seekers who arrive in the UK by small boat to be returned to France in exchange for others being brought to Britain legally, has faced criticism from humanitarian groups and beneficiaries alike.
The Guardian, citing a report in Le Monde, said a French interior ministry source indicated the agreement would not be extended beyond October. An action plan announced by the European Commission on 18 June is intended to replace the bilateral approach, the report said. The UK Home Office has welcomed the EU plan, saying it provides a more coordinated response to Channel crossings. A Home Office spokesperson said the agreement with France has been extended until the autumn, ensuring removals of migrants who arrive on small boats continue over the summer.
Meanwhile, the scheme has undergone amendments to address a loophole. According to The Guardian, the UK and France were forced to rewrite the deal because of concerns about people re-entering the UK after being removed to the continent. The original treaty allowed for the return of small boat arrivals to France, but people smugglers used lorries to bring previously deported individuals back to the UK. In a letter to French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez, UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood proposed adding the objective of deterring "clandestine returns" to the UK by individuals previously transferred to France. To close the loophole, the Home Office created a new classification of claimant, a "returnee case". At least four people who had been deported under the scheme travelled back to the UK by lorry over a two-week period in March, following at least two in the autumn.
Statistics provided by the Home Office and reported by The Guardian show that between September and 9 June, 921 asylum seekers were returned to France and 896 were brought to the UK legally. Between 15 and 22 June, 1,939 asylum seekers arrived in the UK on small boats. The removals represent 3.5% of all small boat arrivals since the treaty came into effect on 6 August last year. In total, more than 900 people have been allowed into the UK under the scheme.
The fairness of the scheme has been questioned by those who benefit from it. In what The Guardian described as the first interview with an asylum seeker brought to the UK legally, the man, who remains anonymous, said: "I am very happy to be here, but it's not fair that another asylum seeker who may have a very similar case to mine but arrived in a small boat has been sent back to France so I can come here legally." He added: "I don't support sending some people back to France so that others like me can come to the UK." The man acknowledged his legal journey by plane from Paris was safer and faster than dangerous small boat crossings, but expressed frustration at waiting in limbo for his asylum interview. "I applied for a university scholarship, but was told I am not eligible because I am an asylum seeker," he said. "I am doing some volunteering, but by not allowing us to work or study and just waiting, the Home Office is teaching us to be lazy."
The charity Safe Passage, which supports asylum seeker families in France, condemned the policy as "not a genuine route to protection". The humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders described the scheme as "a cynical bargaining over human lives" and reported cases of acute stress disorder among people sent back to France. Critics have also expressed doubts that the scheme has acted as the deterrent that UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer hoped for when he announced the "groundbreaking" deal with French President Emmanuel Macron. Additional reporting indicated that some people returned to France say their lives have been threatened by people smugglers based in northern France.