France, UK mull migrant swaps in bid to stem Channel crossings

PARIS: Paris and London are discussing a trial to deport undocumented migrants from the United Kingdom to France in exchange for allowing others to join family in Britain, France´s interior ministry said on Thursday.

The United Kingdom is seeking to crack down on migrants crossing the Channel from France to England on flimsy rubber dinghies in search of a better life. France and Britain have pledged to step up the fight against people smugglers who enable the sometimes deadly crossings.

Both sides are discussing “a trial”, France´s interior ministry said. It would be carried out “on a one-for-one basis of a legal entry for family reunification in exchange for (France) readmitting undocumented migrants who managed to cross” the Channel to the United Kingdom.

“Setting up legal routes, as well as re-entries (to France) to discourage migrant smuggling networks, are part of possible solutions,” it added. Asked for comment, the British Home Office said the United Kingdom, France and other European countries were “exploring fresh and innovative measures to dismantle the business models of the criminal smuggling gangs”.

Last year, more than 36,800 people crossed the Channel, up 25 percent from 2023, according to British figures. According to French authorities, 78 migrants died in 2024 while trying to reach England aboard small boats, a record since the start of the trend in this area in 2018.