Rough crossings

It has been a messy start to the new year for Sajid Javid. For months now, migrants using small boats have been landing in Kent, usually no more than a dozen people at a time. For a country that receives up to 2,500 asylum applications a month, this falls short of a national crisis. It was quite absurd for Tory MPs to talk about deploying the Royal Navy to fend off a few dinghies, and absurd for the Home Secretary to rush back from his holiday to handle the non-crisis and declare it a ‘major incident’. It is a minor incident, but may turn into a major one if the government panics.

Migration patterns change, as do the methods. Over the past few years we have seen the rise of a global people-trafficking industry, a new evil that is responsible for the deaths of thousands of migrants. Most of those arriving by boat are not fleeing war but are seeking a better life and — crucially — have enough money to pay for the journey.