According to government data, asylum seekers are using several routes to reach British soil.
According to a source within the UK Home Office, The Times reported on Saturday that an estimated 21,000 migrants are thought to have entered the country last year completely undetected by border authorities.
In spite of the number, a Home Office official told the Times in remarks that were published on Saturday, “We remain unrelenting in our pursuit of individuals who seek to enter the UK illegally. Border Force has effective systems in place to identify anyone entering the UK illegally and is prepared to react to any techniques used.
According to government information obtained by the newspaper, about 30,000 asylum seekers arrived in the UK using different forms of transportation than small boats.
According to Home Office records, Border Force agents stopped nearly 9,000 people who were trying to enter the UK illegally and without proper documentation. As a result, it can be assumed that 21,000 migrants who attempted to apply for asylum in 2022 entered the UK undetected by immigration authorities.
Up to 72 hours after crossing the border, border officers discovered another 54,563 migrants who entered the UK, including those who landed on small boats, lorries, or ships as stowaways, according to the Times.
Since gaining office in Downing Street last year, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has made it a priority to fulfil his campaign promise to “Stop the Boats.” However, it appears from the Home Office statistics that more and more immigrants are selecting unconventional entrance points.
According to supply chain expert Oakland International, this may be a result of migrants looking for alternative entry points as a result of Sunak’s policy on small boats, which included deporting unauthorised immigrants to Rwanda.
The data raises concerns about the effectiveness of UK border entrance security, according to the Times. Last year, data from the goods sector revealed that the official government statistics, which seemed to indicate a sharp decline in the number of stowaway migrants, did not correspond to larger numbers of migrant detections noted in the industry data.
business magazine According to The Grocer, it saw a 33% spike in fresh produce that had to be thrown away due to concerns about stowaways’ potential impact on food safety last year. The Home Office upped the penalty that transport firms must pay in February from £2,000 ($2,500) per migrant to £10,000 ($12,750) per stowaway.
