Tackling migrant crisis is as important as climate change, Keir Starmer says

Sir Keir Starmer has said that tackling the migrant crisis is “every bit as significant” as tackling climate change in a speech announcing new measures to combat the small boat crisis.

Addressing Interpol’s General Assembly on Monday, the prime minister said that addressing the migrant crisis would be a “victory for humanity” that would help to save “countless lives”.

“If together, we could win this war against the people smugglers, then this gathering would have achieved a victory for humanity every bit as significant as the Glasgow Climate Pact. Because you will have helped to smash the gangs, secure our borders and save countless lives,” Sir Keir said.

It comes as the government prepares to fast track people responsible for smuggling refugees on small boats through the courts in the same way as those who participated in the summer riots.

As part of a £150m package of measures to tackle the small boat crisis announced on Monday, the prime minister will order the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to speed up charges for people smugglers.

The prime minister is looking to replicate efforts earlier this year that delivered swift justice following the August riots that swept England and Northern Ireland after three young girls were killed in Southport, Downing Street said.

Giving a speech to the Interpol General Assembly in Glasgow on Monday, the PM pledged another £75m for his new border command, taking its total funding to £150m over two years.

He used the speech to kick off a week-long blitz on the issue which will see him travel to Hungary for talks on tackling people smuggling. The money will be used to fund high-tech surveillance equipment and 100 specialist investigators who will target criminals.

“The world needs to wake up to the severity of this challenge. I was elected to deliver security for the British people. And strong borders are a part of that. But security doesn’t stop at our borders.

“There’s nothing progressive about turning a blind eye as men, women and children die in the Channel”, Sir Keir said.

The home secretary confirmed the £75m is new funding allocated in last week’s Budget.

But asked if the money would result in a significant fall in migrant crossing numbers in 2025, she dodged the question.

Yvette Cooper told Sky News: “No one should be making these dangerous boat crossings. They undermine border security, they put lives at risk and we have seen far too many lives lost.

“The prime minister has made clear we want to see significant progress made but we have to have those partnerships made and that is what we are working on, working with France on going after the gang networks that are operating in northern France, working with Germany on some of the supply chains, the way in which the boats are being moved across Europe in order to be moved to northern France.”

She said the government’s approach marks a “huge step change in the way in which we are working on international law enforcement to go after the gangs.”

The government intends to legislate to give border security forces “enhanced” powers, expected to involve expanding counter-terror tactics to deal with people smuggling.

The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill will be the fourth piece of immigration legislation unveiled since 2022 as successive administrations have made attempts to tackle the issue.

Sir Keir added: “This is a vile trade that must be stamped out – wherever it thrives. So we’re taking our approach to counter-terrorism, which we know works, and applying it to the gangs, with our new Border Security Command.

“We’re ending the fragmentation between policing, Border Force and our intelligence agencies.”

His speech comes after more than 5,000 people crossed the Channel in small boats in October, making it the busiest month of the year so far for crossings.

Crossings continued into November, with 433 people arriving in the UK via small boats over the first two days of the month.

In total, 31,904 people have made the journey so far this year, up 16.5 per cent on the same point in 2023 (26,699) but still down 22.1 per cent on the same point in 2022 (39,929).

A Conservative Party spokesperson claimed the prime minister’s announcement “will mean absolutely nothing without a deterrent to stop migrants wishing to make the dangerous journey across the Channel”.

“It is a shame that Starmer has not recognised the extent of the crisis in the Channel sooner, as he and the Labour Party voted against numerous measures to stop the gangs while they were in opposition,” they added.

“If Starmer continues to ignore the need for a deterrent to stop migrants crossing the Channel, there will be more deaths in the Channel as more and more migrants continue to cross it. He needs to get a grip of the crisis.”