Report into worst Channel migrant disaster finds a crucial wrong assumption hampered rescue efforts

Published

1 year ago

November 9, 2023

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An official report into the deaths of at least 27 migrants using a “wholly unsuitable” boat in the English Channel has said the response team in Dover was “insufficient” to react, “foreseeable” problems were not recognised and French and British teams failed to share information properly.

The incident, in November 2021, was the deadliest involving a migrant boat trying to cross the Channel. The victims included a pregnant woman and three children.

The report, carried out by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch, says that 33 passengers had been put on a boat that was “entirely unsuitable for the intended voyage and number of people on board”.

The report also says migrants phoning from boats had been told “to claim high levels of distress when in UK waters in the hope of expediting rescue” and that this “had the potential to mask genuine distress”.

It also suggests that coastguard personnel may have developed a “mental threshold” of assuming that people were in “less severe peril” than they claimed.

However, relatives of those involved have criticised the report, saying it is vague, ambiguous, lacking in detail and does not hold anybody to account.

The government has announced it will hold a separate inquiry into the events surrounding the sinking of the boat, describing it as a full and independent investigation.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said it would offer “families of the victims the clarity they deserve”.

Report identifies tragic mistakes

Only two of those on the boat survived. The bodies of the other four have never been found, but they are presumed to be dead, meaning that it is almost certain that 31 people died on the night of 23-24 November, 2021.

The report is separate from France’s investigation into the disaster, which has now seen preliminary charges laid against five emergency service officials for allegedly failing to assist people in danger.

This British report says that “despite extensive requests, the investigation was not granted access to any information held by French authorities”.

It finds that the British response was “hampered” by a combination of poor visibility, a high number of boats that were crossing due to good weather, and the fact that there was no aircraft available to carry out a surveillance mission across the English Channel.

This meant that the search and rescue response was based on phone calls from migrants on boats, as well as information from French authorities.

Reconciling the information was “extremely challenging”, the report says, due to the high number of calls, often coming from people on the same boat, and the difficulty in distinguishing one boat from another.

In the end, having established that a boat was sinking with more than 30 people on board, three migrant boats were located in UK waters during the ensuing search, leading to a wrong assumption that the people in peril had already been saved.

“The investigation found that there was an assumption that the first boat to be found was the stricken craft,” the report concludes. “Events moved on and the plight of the genuinely stricken craft became masked by the increasingly busy task of dealing with crossing events.”

‘I am finished’

The full report is more than a hundred pages long and presents a stark account of the accident and the hectic conversations between British authorities, French counterparts and migrants.

During the night, the boat was codenamed “Charlie” by the British and Migrant8 by the French.

The report details various calls for help from passengers who call in on their phones, with one screaming down the line and saying “I am finished”.

Another call is full of shouting and noise, saying that the boat has broken.

The report says call handlers seemed unsure as to whether they were dealing with another boat in peril – or simply new reports about a vessel they already knew about.

It details how a helicopter pilot had to be woken up when it was agreed that a fixed-wing aircraft couldn’t fly.

The report also recounts a call received from a passenger saying that everyone is in the water and that they are “finished”.

A message sent to one of the passengers at 3.33am was not delivered, leading the report to conclude that the passengers went into the water between 3.12am and 3.33am.

Other inflatable migrant boats in the area were contacted and rescued, leading to confusion as to whether these were “Charlie” or simply similar vessels.

Sister of victim ‘not satisfied at all’

The report says there have been significant changes in the way authorities respond to small boat crossings since the disaster, and notes a number of reviews.

But it does call for greater coordination with the French to avoid “confusion and error” and also for UK authorities to improve surveillance.

However, relatives of those involved in the sinking have criticised the report.

Zana Mamand’s brother Twana was on the boat. His body has never been recovered.

“This report is not thorough and it is very ambiguous,” he told Sky News. “The French report is much better – it gave verbatim accounts of what happened, and what was said, and it has led to action.

“This one is much more vague. There is very little detail of the conversations or the decisions.

“I am not satisfied at all. The British authorities seem to have spent two years on a report that achieves very little.

“The families want answers – I want to know what effort was put into finding my brother’s body.

“I have been asking this for two years and I have never received an answer.”

UK

Ellis Cox: Mother appeals to catch son’s killer on birthday anniversary

Published

3 hours ago

January 18, 2025

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Ellis Cox: Mother appeals to catch son's killer on birthday anniversary

Fresh appeals have been made for information on what would have been the 20th birthday of Ellis Cox, who was shot dead in Liverpool last June.

A number of people have been arrested in connection with the murder at Liver Industrial Estate, but no one has been charged yet.

The 19-year-old’s family and police have paid tribute to him and called for those with information to come forward.

He was shot in the back after a confrontation between his friends and another group of up to three males on Sunday 23 June.

His mother Carolyn paid tribute in an appeal to coincide with what would have been his 20th birthday.

“He was so kind… so laid back, so calm, so mature for his age. And he was just funny. Very funny.

“He was my baby… no mum should have to bury a child. He was my life. And I don’t know what to do without him.”

Meanwhile, his aunt Julie O’Toole said he was “the sort of person I think you’d be hard pressed to find anyone to say anything negative about. He was loyal, fiercely loyal… everything was about his family”.

To pay tribute to Ellis, Liverpool City Council will be lighting up the Cunard Building and Liverpool Town Hall in orange on Saturday.

Detective Chief Inspector Steve McGrath, the senior investigating officer, spoke about the information gathered so far, six months on from Mr Cox’s murder.

“I’m satisfied that the group that he was with was probably the target… and I would say that’s got something in relation to do with localised drug dealing in that area. But Ellis had no involvement in that whatsoever,” he said.

He added that police are looking for “really significant pieces of evidence now”, including “trying to recover the firearm that was used in relation to this, looking to recover the bikes that were used by the offenders”.

Mrs Cox also appealed for people to come forward with information.

“If you know anything, don’t let us get to [his] next birthday and still know nothing.

“We need to get justice for Ellis. And we need to get the people who took him from us off the streets.”

UK

Manchester United legend Denis Law dies aged 84

Published

14 hours ago

January 17, 2025

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Manchester United legend Denis Law dies aged 84

Former Manchester United and Scotland footballer Denis Law has died, at the age of 84.

In a statement, his family said: “It is with a heavy heart that we tell you our father Denis Law has sadly passed away. He fought a tough battle, but finally, he is now at peace.

“We would like to thank everyone who contributed to his wellbeing and care, past and much more recently.

“We know how much people supported and loved him and that love was always appreciated and made the difference.”

The Aberdeen-born footballer previously announced in August 2021 that he had been diagnosed with dementia.

A prolific striker, Law scored 237 goals in 404 appearances for Manchester United, for whom he signed for a then-British record transfer fee in 1962.

He is the only man to have two statues dedicated to him at Old Trafford – one on the Stretford End concourse, the other as part of the United Trinity statue overlooking the stadium’s forecourt beside fellow great George Best and Sir Bobby Charlton.

The only Scottish player to have won the Ballon d’Or award, in 1964, he was also part of United’s triumphant campaign in the 1968 European Cup – in which they became the first English club to ever win the competition.

In a statement, the club said: “Everyone at Manchester United is mourning the loss of Denis Law, the King of the Stretford End, who has passed away, aged 84.

“He will always be celebrated as one of the club’s greatest and most beloved players.

“The ultimate goalscorer, his flair, spirit and love for the game made him the hero of a generation. Our deepest condolences go out to Denis’s family and many friends. His memory will live on forever more.”

Wayne Rooney, former United captain and the club’s all-time record goalscorer, described Law as a “legend”.

“Thoughts with all Denis’s family and friends,” he said in an online post.

Another former United captain, Gary Neville, said: “A great footballer and a great man. It’s a privilege and an honour to have spent time in your company. The King of the Stretford End.”

A tribute from the Scotland national team said Law was “a true great”.

“We will not see his likes again,” it said.

Law also played for Huddersfield Town, Manchester City, and Italian club Torino during his club career, and made 55 appearances for Scotland, scoring 30 goals for his country.

Manchester City said in a post on X: “The whole of Manchester, including everyone at City, is mourning with you. Rest in peace, Denis.”

UK

FTSE 100 closes at record high

Published

15 hours ago

January 17, 2025

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The UK’s benchmark stock index has reached another record high.

The FTSE 100 index of most valuable companies on the London Stock Exchange closed at 8,505.69, breaking the record set last May.

It had already broken its intraday high at 8532.58 on Friday afternoon, meaning it reached a high not seen before during trading hours.

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The weakened pound has boosted many of the 100 companies forming the top-flight index.

Why is this happening?

Most are not based in the UK, so a less valuable pound means their sterling-priced shares are cheaper to buy for people using other currencies, typically US dollars.

This makes the shares better value, prompting more to be bought. This greater demand has brought up the prices and the FTSE 100.

The pound has been hovering below $1.22 for much of Friday. It’s steadily fallen from being worth $1.34 in late September.

Also spurring the new record are market expectations for more interest rate cuts in 2025, something which would make borrowing cheaper and likely kickstart spending.

What is the FTSE 100?

The index is made up of many mining and international oil and gas companies, as well as household name UK banks and supermarkets.

Familiar to a UK audience are lenders such as Barclays, Natwest, HSBC and Lloyds and supermarket chains Tesco, Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury’s.

Other well-known names include Rolls-Royce, Unilever, easyJet, BT Group and Next.

FTSE stands for Financial Times Stock Exchange.

If a company’s share price drops significantly it can slip outside of the FTSE 100 and into the larger and more UK-based FTSE 250 index.

The inverse works for the FTSE 250 companies, the 101st to 250th most valuable firms on the London Stock Exchange. If their share price rises significantly they could move into the FTSE 100.

A good close for markets

It’s a good end of the week for markets, entirely reversing the rise in borrowing costs that plagued Chancellor Rachel Reeves for the past ten days.

Fears of long-lasting high borrowing costs drove speculation she would have to cut spending to meet self-imposed fiscal rules to balance the budget and bring down debt by 2030.

Long-term government borrowing had reached a high not seen since 1998 while the benchmark 10-year cost of government borrowing, as measured by 10-year gilt yields, was at levels last seen around the 2008 financial crisis.

The gilt yield is effectively the interest rate investors demand to lend money to the UK government.

Only the pound has yet to recover the losses incurred during the market turbulence. Without that dropped price, however, the FTSE 100 record may not have happened.

Also acting to reduce sterling value is the chance of more interest rates. Currencies tend to weaken when interest rates are cut.