PARIS (Reuters) – Britain and France will sign a joint declaration on Monday to ramp up their efforts to stop illegal migrants from making perilous journeys across the Channel.
French interior minister Gerald Darmanin will host his British counterpart Suella Braverman in Paris early on Monday morning to sign an agreement, according to a media invitation issued by France’s Interior Ministry.
A French official confirmed a deal would be agreed on Monday, but declined to give further details.
So far this year, about 40,000 people have crossed the Channel in small boats, up from 28,526 last year, putting pressure on new British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to find a way to slow the flow.
Britain’s Telegraph newspaper reported on Saturday that the Anglo-French deal would significantly increase the 200 French officers and volunteers who operate on Channel beaches, and France will aim for a “much higher” proportion of migrants to be prevented from leaving.
France will also agree to a joint control centre where British immigration officials will be stationed while London would pay some 60 million pounds ($71 million) to Paris to help deal with the issue, the Telegraph said.
On Friday, British foreign minister James Cleverly and French counterpart Catherine Colonna issued a statement stressing the “urgency of tackling all forms of illegal migration”.
($1 = 0.8450 pounds)
(Reporting by Paris Newsroom; Editing by Susan Fenton)
