Deaths in the Channel are now troublingly familiar
Deaths in the Channel have now become troublingly familiar.
We are no longer shocked, or even very surprised, when people die while trying to get from France to Britain in these unsuitable inflatable boats. But what happened today resonates on two levels.
As humans, we should be shocked that people die in this way, particularly when a small child is trampled – a grotesque way for a young life to end.
And note that, once a group of passengers, as well as the dead child, had been taken off, the boat continued on its way. These journeys can be brutal, dangerous and callous.
Secondly, for politicians, on both sides of the Channel, there is that pressure to do something, and to be seen to do something.
The Rwanda plan has gone and won’t come back. The promotion of Michel Barnier to become French prime minister could be the catalyst for Paris to take a more proactive view against migration.
It’s easy to think that would help the problem in the Channel, but Mr Barnier’s focus will be on those entering France – not those leaving it.
Many in France blame the British for what they see as a lax benefits system, and for denying asylum seekers any opportunity to register their claim before reaching British shores.
The people under pressure are Sir Keir Starmer and Yvette Cooper, and their promises to tackle cross-Channel migration by being tough on people smugglers.
The more tragedies we see, the more people who cross, the greater the focus on whether those promises are fulfilled.
