Migrants: 45,000 cross the Channel in 2022, a record

(ANSA) - LONDON, 01 JAN - More than 45,000 migrants crossed the English Channel to reach the United Kingdom from continental Europe in 2022, exceeding the previous year's record by over 17,000.

These are the data published this morning by the government in what has become a huge political problem for the British Conservative executive who has promised to reduce illegal immigration and to vanquish the gangs of traffickers who carry out the crossings.

    In total, 45,756 people made the perilous small boat crossing of one of the world's busiest shipping lanes last year, up from 28,526 in 2021. Four people died last month when a small boat loaded with migrants capsized due to freezing temperatures in the English Channel.

A fishing boat in the area rescued 43 people from the icy waters.

The tragedy came just over a year after at least 27 people drowned when their dinghy capsized, a disaster that sparked soul-searching on both sides of the Channel.

2022 also saw the highest number of migrants making the crossing in a single day, with 1,295 people making the journey on 22 August.

(HANDLE).