Dozens of police officers are powerless on French beaches as people smugglers exploit loopholes to pack dinghy
So here’s a story of a morning at the beach. There’s no ice cream, no sandcastles and no sense of fun in this tale – but there are criminal gangs, dune buggies and desperate people.
This beach in Calais is an illustration of the lengths people will go to, the risks they will take, just to try to get to Britain. And things start early.
We arrive at the beach at about 4am. There is a beautiful orange sunset on the way and barely a whisper of wind. But down on the shore, things are happening.
A group of people are getting on to a dinghy and slowly heading out into the Channel.
As we arrive, the boat is making its way toward Britain, while the people smugglers are heading back toward their hiding places in the dunes.
More will follow. A little later, we see another boat come around the headland, chugging slowly along.
As we’re watching, a crowd of people – men, women and children – start hurrying down the beach.
We can see them as they head towards the shore, splashing through the water to try to get on to the boat.
As we catch up and film the scene, three of the Kurdish smugglers start shouting at us. They may not speak English but, safe to say, they know a few swear words.
By now, the sun has risen. Smugglers used to only send people out under the cover of darkness, but now they are more bold.
Boat launches happen quickly these days. Smugglers have worked out that it’s much more efficient to launch the boat elsewhere and bring it round to the beach, allowing your passengers to run into the water and clamber aboard.
And, under maritime law, there’s not much the French police can do to get involved.
They’re not allowed to enter the water to stop a boat that hasn’t asked for help and, well, it’s not illegal for migrants to run into the water.
Basically, there are loopholes that smugglers have learned to exploit, and which hinder and frustrate the police. And we’re about to see that play out.
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Police monitor from the beach – but under French law, cannot intervene
A large, black dinghy comes into sight, heading in our direction. This time, though, there is a reaction.
On the beach, the police are gathering, ready to puncture the vessel if it comes on land.
Two teams of officers have arrived on the dune buggies they drive across the beaches; others have walked down. I count 25 officers at one point.
On the water, a police boat – its blue lights flashing – is circling the dinghy, building up waves and trying to knock it off course, to stop it from reaching the waters near the beach, where a group of people are now slowly gathering, a little way from both the water and the police.
The police boat continues to zig-zag, but the dinghy, with five men on board, is resolute.
A police boat near the dinghy
It perseveres and, as it nears the water, the men offer up a signal, and there is a sudden surge from the beach.
The group who had been waiting quietly now rush forward, past the police and into the sea. They wade into the water and set out towards the boat.
And we follow them, striding into water that rapidly rises to the top of our legs. Two men stride past, each cradling a child. I can see people scrambling to get on to the boat.
A minute ago, the atmosphere of these people had been deliberate and calm. Now, it feels chaotic.
A woman’s cry, desperate and imploring, rings out. She has drifted away from the boat and, despite wearing a life jacket, she is struggling in the water.
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One of the smugglers comes over and brings her back to the boat, helping her on.
Some children are crying; others simply seem bewildered.
The last two people to get on are men, who pull themselves up and out of the water with a huge effort.
Everyone on board is drenched; many have lost or dropped the bags they’d brought with them. But they are on a dinghy, and now, with a jolt, the engine is pulled into action and they start their journey towards British waters.
We stride back through the water and reach the shore. The police have been watching, filming the boat on their phones, powerless to stop anything happening.
And beyond them is another crowd of migrants, now walking away from the beach. The ones who couldn’t get on to this boat, or who decided it was simply too dangerous.
Those that couldn’t make it to the dinghy headed back
Among them is Rebaz, from Iraq, who’s trying to get to Britain with his wife and his two small children, one of them just five months old.
In his home country, he insists, his whole family would be at risk. Rebaz says the family, including their baby, has been sleeping out in the cold.
He dreams of getting across the Channel.
“We have tried four times to get across,” he tells me.
“Will you try again?” I ask.
A shrug.
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“Yes, of course because I don’t have any solution. I know it will be very dangerous for me and for my children. But when you don’t have any solution… I will try,” he said.
“I don’t want to take money from anyone. I just want to live a life, be safe and make a life for my children.”
His daughter clings on to his neck as he talks, Rebaz holding her close. He has a desperation to get to Britain, a belief that crossing the Channel will right the wrongs of his life.
And, as long as people have that belief, the smugglers will have customers.
Watch special programme on migration crisis with Yalda Hakim on Sky News from 9pm tonight
An MP has told Sky News she was attacked online by the Tate brothers after she participated in a debate in the House of Commons about violence against women.
The controversial duo, Andrew and Tristan Tate, are facing charges of rape and human trafficking in the UK – all of which they deny.
But they are still very active online, and according to Sorcha Eastwood, the MP for Lagan Valley, are targeting her.
In a document seen by Sky News, Tristan Tate has highlighted one of the MP’s tweets and writes in private correspondence: “MP, nice target, can we sue her?”
Sorcha Eastwood says at first she thought the replies were from parody accounts and not the Tate brothers.
Her original tweet was about Elon Musk, not the Tate brothers. The MP said Musk’s tweets should be looked at through a counter-extremism lens.
“I was really concerned, I was concerned because to me that is a direct attack for want of a better phrase on me serving my constituents.
“I couldn’t believe that they decided to pick this random Northern Irish MP. The fact that it wasn’t even about them. This is something I didn’t go looking for.
“I think from my perspective, it’s a very, very sinister attempt to shut down important voices in public life, political discourse.”
It was only when she started noticing an uptick in abuse from other accounts she realised she had encountered some of the brothers’ followers.
“I had rape threats. I had death threats. I had people saying I should be hung from a lamppost. I had people saying I should be chopped into liver. I also had people then who were like we’ll waste 15 minutes raping Sorcha Eastwood.”
A representative for the Tate brothers told Sky News that there was no targeted campaign against Sorcha Eastwood
A representative for the Tate brothers told Sky News that there was no targeted campaign against her.
They said: “Ms Eastwood has a distorted view regarding social media if she believes one is required to ‘invite or ask’ people to interact.
“Tristan Tate is entitled to his view in relation to her tweet regarding Elon Musk.”
The self-styled “misogynist influencer” Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have both been charged with human trafficking, face allegations of trafficking minors, sexual intercourse with a minor and money laundering in Romania.
There is also a European arrest warrant for them as they are facing separate, unrelated charges of rape and human trafficking in the UK. They deny all charges.
Ms Eastwood now worries for others who don’t have a platform like her and who may not feel like they can speak out.
“If this is what has happened to me I have absolutely no doubt that this has happened to others where they have been attempted to be silenced.”
Keir Starmer has previously commented on the Tate brothers’ case in the Commons saying it is “a live issue”, but adding that “the principle is absolutely clear” in relation to whether the brothers should face justice.
Sorcha Eastwood says she wants to see the government do much more to protect against abuse online.
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Tate brothers deny wrongdoing
“I think ultimately the government has taken the wrong course on this. They need to step up.
“This should be an issue of national security as far as the radicalisation of young people online. It should be an issue in terms of the levels of misinformation, disinformation and the lack of trust that is had in our politics right across the UK and Europe.
“I want the government to help me, help every other person to crack down on this and get serious about it. And the only way they’ll be able to do that, is by hitting these tech companies in the only language which they understand, which is money and via robust legislation.”
A government spokesperson said: “Violence against women and girls is a scourge on our society which is why we have set out an unprecedented mission to halve these crimes within a decade.
“Tackling illegal abuse both online and offline is central to supporting victims and preventing harm in our communities and we will not hesitate to strengthen laws to deliver this mission.
“Last month, parts of the Online Safety Act came into force meaning companies must take action to protect users from illegal material including extreme sexual violence.
“Further protections from this summer will require platforms to protect children from harmful, misogynistic, and violent content.”
UK
‘It’s just nasty’: Birmingham residents ‘overwhelmed’ by foul stench and massive rats as bins strike rumbles on
In parts of Birmingham, the stench is overwhelming – enough to make you heave.
At a block of flats in Highgate, in Birmingham city centre, we find a mountain of bin liners full of rubbish spewing out of the cavernous bin store, which is normally locked.
Mickel comes out to speak to us, while all around bin liners lie open, with the contents for all to see, including used nappies and rotting food.
Mickel says they’ve had ‘foxes and rats, literally the size of cats’
Outside Mickel’s flat in Highgate, bin liners lie open, spewing out rubbish
We both find it hard to keep talking amid the awful smell.
“We’ve had foxes and rats, literally the size of cats, flies, it’s just nasty, something needs to be done,” he says.
Chris says the situation is ‘overwhelming’ as she’s ‘terrified of rats’
Around the corner, I meet Chris, in her dressing gown, popping the bins into her bin store beneath her flat before work.
She unlocks it, and although it isn’t bursting out on to the street yet, it is getting full.
She says the situation is “overwhelming” as she’s “terrified of rats”. But, even so, she has sympathy for the striking bin workers.
“It’s not an easy job; they must have a heart of gold to do that job,” she says.
“Pay them whatever they need, they deserve it.”
Striking bin workers at Lifford Lane tip, south of the city centre
There’s an awful smell coming from a mountain of bin liners outside Mickel’s flat in Highgate
At Lifford Lane tip, south of the city centre, Brigette has pulled up alongside picketing workers. The back seat of her car is full of rubbish.
She apologises for the terrible waft, mixed with air freshener.
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“It’s very pungent, isn’t it? Not nice,” she admits.
“It’s unfortunate, I have some sympathies for all the parties, but, equally, we have a duty of care to stay clean and tidy.”
She says she has her rubbish and that of her elderly aunt and plans to make weekly trips to the tip until a resolution in this pay dispute between the council and the Unite union is found.
UK
‘US is our closest ally’, Jonathan Reynolds says in reaction to Trump tariffs – but ‘nothing off the table’
The US is “our closest ally” but “nothing is off the table” in response to Donald Trump’s 10% tariffs on imports from the UK, the business secretary has said.
In a statement following the US president’s nearly hour-long address to the world, Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “We will always act in the best interests of UK businesses and consumers.
“That’s why, throughout the last few weeks, the government has been fully focused on negotiating an economic deal with the United States that strengthens our existing fair and balanced trading relationship.”
Follow the latest following Trump’s tariffs announcement
Mr Reynolds reiterated the statements from the prime minister and his cabinet over the past few days, saying the US is “our closest ally”, and the government’s approach is to “remain calm and committed to doing this deal, which we hope will mitigate the impact of what has been announced today”.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds says “nothing is off the table” following the tariffs announcement. Pic: PA
But he continued: “We have a range of tools at our disposal, and we will not hesitate to act. We will continue to engage with UK businesses, including on their assessment of the impact of any further steps we take.
“Nobody wants a trade war, and our intention remains to secure a deal. But nothing is off the table, and the government will do everything necessary to defend the UK’s national interest.”
‘Get back round the negotiating table’, say Tories
The Conservative Party’s shadow business and trade secretary described the US president’s announcement as “disappointing news which will worry working families across the country”.
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Sky’s Ed Conway examines how economies across the world are impacted by tariffs
Andrew Griffith hit out at the government for having “failed to negotiate with President Trump’s team for too many months after the election, failed to keep our experienced top trade negotiator, and failed to get a deal to avoid the imposition of these tariffs by our closest trading partner”.
“The chancellor’s emergency budget of just a week ago with its inadequate headroom is now at risk, casting uncertainty about more taxes or spending cuts,” he continued. “Sadly, it is British businesses and workers who will pay the price for Labour’s failure.”
He called on ministers to “swallow their pride” and “get back round the negotiating table to agree a fair deal to protect jobs and consumers in both the UK and the US alike”.
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has reacted furiously to Mr Trump’s announcement of a “destructive trade war”, and called on the government to stand up against “Trump’s attempts to divide and rule”.
“The prime minister should bring our Commonwealth and European partners together in a coalition of the willing against Trump’s tariffs, using retaliatory tariffs where necessary and signing new trade deals with each other where possible.”
Speaking on Wednesday evening at a White House event entitled ‘Make America Wealthy Again’, the US president unleashed sweeping tariffs across the globe.
Mr Trump held up a chart detailing the worst offenders – which also showed the new tariffs the US would be imposing.
The UK’s rate of 10% was perhaps a shot across the bow over the 20% VAT rate, though the president’s suggested a 10% tariff imbalance between the two nations. Nonetheless, tariffs of 10% could directly reduce UK GDP by between 0.01% and 0.06%, according to Capital Economics.
A 25% duty on all car imports from around the world is also being imposed from midnight in the US – 5am on Thursday, UK time.
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The UK government had been hoping to negotiate an economic deal with the US in a bid to avoid the tariffs, but to no avail. The government says negotiations will continue.
The Confederation of British Industry said “negotiating stronger trading relationships with all like-minded partners will be foundational to any success”.
The business secretary is expected to make a statement in the House of Commons on Thursday, and we are also expecting to hear from the prime minister.
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