Tories should listen to Farage’s warnings about Channel migrants

The idea of a flotilla of little ships crossing the English Channel from France to deposit their beleaguered human cargo safely on our shores was born in this country’s darkest hour during the second world war.

To say that the method behind the success of the Dunkirk evacuation 80 years ago has been repurposed for the modern age is something of an understatement. These days the little ships are usually inflatable dinghies packed with desperate young men from Asia and Africa who seek to evade this country’s immigration laws.

They land at various points between Dover and Hastings and – if undetected – many head for rendezvous points pre-arranged with people traffickers for onward transit to London and other major cities. Others end up in south coast towns employed illegally and on exploitative terms in businesses such as hand carwashes.

Often they are intercepted while still at sea and then escorted ashore by the UK Border Force, in which case asylum claims tend to follow, along with detention and a protracted legal process.