Sir Keir Starmer’s small boats record is worse than any other Prime Minister since the Channel crossings first rocked Britain in 2018, damning new data has revealed.
Despite the Prime Minister’s tough talk yesterday, a staggering 29,884 asylum seekers arrived on British shores between Labour’s thumping victory last summer and March 29 this year.
The figure equates to just over 780 per week, compared to 570 for Rishi Sunak and just 400 for Boris Johnson.
After entering No10, Starmer vowed to “smash the gangs” but immediately axed Sunak’s Rwanda relocation plan.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp claimed the latest surge has come as a “direct consequence” of the decision to cancel the Rwanda scheme.
He said: “Today’s conference will make no difference. Law enforcement alone cannot stop illegal immigration – you need a removals deterrent.”
However, a Home Office spokesman argued: “We all want to end dangerous small boat crossings, which threaten lives and undermine our border security.
“The people-smuggling gangs do not care if the vulnerable people they exploit live or die, as long as they pay, and we will stop at nothing to dismantle their business models and bring them to justice.
“That’s why the UK is hosted the landmark Organised Immigration Crime Summit, bringing together 40 countries to dismantle people-smuggling gangs.
“This adds to our action to strengthen enforcement powers, ramp up returns to their highest levels for more than half a decade and crackdown on illegal working.”
‘Stop kowtowing to him!’ Starmer urged to convene Cobra meeting ahead of Trump trade war
Sir Keir Starmer has been urged to convene a Cobra meeting just hours before Donald Trump’s tariffs look set to take effect.
The Liberal Democrats, who have been outspokenly in favour of pursuing closer relations with Europe, also want the Prime Minister to impose tariffs on Elon Musk’s Teslas.
After calling for a Cobra meeting, Calum Miller MP, Foreign Affairs Spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats, said: “The Prime Minister should call a COBRA meeting today to coordinate Britain’s response to Trump’s trade war – including plans for Tesla tariffs and emergency measures to boost demand in the hardest hit sectors.
“The Government needs to pull out all the stops to protect businesses and families from Donald Trump’s destructive and needless trade war.
“We can’t kowtow to Trump any longer. That is why we’re urging the Government to urgently start talks on a new trade deal with our European neighbours, so we can negotiate with Washington from the strongest position possible.”
Starmer rejects ‘knee jerk’ Trump tariff response as US barriers fuel recession fears
Sir Keir Starmer has rejected taking on a “knee jerk” reaction to Donald Trump’s looming tariffs.
Speaking ahead of the scheduled imposition of levies tomorrow, the Prime Minister said: “I don’t think anybody wants to see tariffs. We’re working hard on an economic deal which we’ve made rapid progress on, and I hope we can make really speedy resolutions on.”
He added: “I’m not going to go ahead of myself. But I am talking to the sectors most impacted, and I think what they want most is a calm and collected response to this, not a knee-jerk response.”
Household costs rise for MILLIONS as Britons hit by EIGHT bill rises and tax hikes
Britons are being hit with a series of household bill increases in what has been nicknamed “awful April.”
Budgets are set to be squeezed across the country, as council tax, stamp duty energy bills and water tariffs are among those set to be increased.
Water and energy bills, council and car tax, broadband, stamp duty, tv licence fees are all set to go up from today.
Donald Trump REJECTS Keir Starmer’s eleventh hour call to avoid trade war
Donald Trump meets British Prime Minister Keir StarmerReuters
Sir Keir Starmer was hit with a brutal rejection by President Donald Trump as the Prime Minister failed to bid for Britain to be excluded from new tariffs.
It comes as the US State Department issued a statement saying it was “concerned about freedom of expression in the United Kingdom” with a source telling The Telegraph there should be “no free trade without free speech”.
The concerns from Washington centre around the case of Livia Tossici-Bolt, who was prosecuted for holding a sign near an abortion clinic in Bournemouth reading: “Here to talk if you want.”
Tossici-Bolt’s case is set to return its verdict on Friday, with the US State Department saying it was “monitoring” the situation.
Whitehall chiefs hiring woke £104k lawyer to oversee equality on Falklands
Whitehall chiefs have made a listing for an £104,000 a year lawyer to oversee equality on the Falkland Islands.
The post would look to cover equality on the 3,662-strong island, which is also home to around a million penguins.
The Head of Legal Services will work in the capital Stanley for the Falkland Islands Government.
Starmer warned UK faces free trade snub over free speech
Sir Keir Starmer has been warned that the UK will miss out of a free trade deal with the US due to an ongoing free speech row.
The US State Department is “concerned about freedom of expression in the United Kingdom”, particularly due to a clampdown on anti-abortion activism.
It said it was “monitoring” the case of Livia Tossici-Bolt, who was prosecuted for holding a sign near a Bournemouth abortion clinic reading: “Here to talk if you want.”
