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Small children were among those arriving in Dover after crossing the English Channel
More than 400 migrants have crossed the English Channel in small boats – a record for a single day.
Border Force has intercepted 409 people, including young children, on board 27 boats, with several further vessels still being dealt with.
Some of the migrants were carrying children too young to walk.
Boris Johnson earlier on Wednesday said the UK had become “a target and a magnet for those who would exploit vulnerable people in this way”.
Some 145 people had crossed the Channel in 18 small boats on Tuesday.
Rough seas brought on by Storm Francis made crossings impossible at the end of August, but conditions have improved in the first two days of September.
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More than 100 migrants arrived in Dover after being picked up by Border Force and RNLI vessels
Speaking in the Commons during Prime Minister’s Questions, Mr Johnson said: “I have a great deal of sympathy with those who are desperate as to put their children in dinghies or in children’s paddling pools and try to cross the channel.
“But I have to say what they’re doing is falling prey to criminal gangs and they are breaking the law.”
He added: “It also undermines the legitimate claims of others who seek asylum in this country.
“We will address the rigidities in our laws that make this country, I’m afraid, a target and a magnet for those who would exploit vulnerable people in this way.”
One group landed at Shakespeare Beach in Dover
Channel crossings by migrants in small boats
Number of people reaching the UK each month since August 2019
More than 1,468 migrants made the crossing by small boat in August despite a vow from Home Secretary Priti Patel to make the dangerous route “unviable”.
The Home Office does not provide information on how many children are making the crossing on small boats.
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