Border Security Command funding to double to £150m to ‘smash the gangs’
Another £75m will go towards “smashing the gangs” as the government beefs up its new Border Security Command unit.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is set to announce the additional funding as he hosts the Interpol general assembly in Glasgow from today, the first time the UK has hosted it in more than 50 years.
The announcement, which kicks off a week-long blitz by Sir Keir on people smuggling, will bring total funding over the next two years to £150m for the Border Security Command (BSC) set up by the Labour government to “smash the gangs” – a new slogan introduced during the election campaign.
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Labour’s initial £75m for the BSC came from scrapping the former Conservative government’s Rwanda scheme, where illegal immigrants and asylum seekers would have been sent to Rwanda for processing, asylum and resettlement.
The new £75m will go towards National Crime Agency (NCA) technology so agents can exploit data and “boost collaboration” with other European countries to “investigate and break people smuggling networks”.
It will also fund 300 border security command staff and 100 NCA specialist investigators and intelligence officers who will be dedicated to catching criminals facilitating people smuggling.
The Crown Prosecution Service’s (CPS) ability to deliver charging decisions more quickly on international organised crime cases will also be funded by it.
October had the highest number of small boat crossings this year. Pic: PA
Sir Keir is expected to tell senior ministers and policing leads from Interpol’s 196 member states: “The world needs to wake up to the severity of this challenge.
“I was elected to deliver security for the British people. And strong borders are a part of that. But security doesn’t stop at our borders.
“There’s nothing progressive about turning a blind eye as men, women and children die in the Channel.
“This is a vile trade that must be stamped out – wherever it thrives. So we’re taking our approach to counter-terrorism – which we know works, and applying it to the gangs, with our new Border Security Command.
“We’re ending the fragmentation between policing, Border Force and our intelligence agencies.”
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The government announced in the King’s Speech it will introduce the border security, asylum and immigration bill as it tries to tackle the issue of illegal immigrants coming into the UK, especially on small boats.
It will be the fourth piece of immigration legislation since 2022 as both the former Conservative government and current Labour government attempt to tackle the issue.
Appearing on Sky News this morning, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper would not be drawn on how soon the number of small boat crossings could fall as a result of the funding.
She said the prime minister has made clear “we want to see significant progress made”, but the government needs partnerships with other countries and “that’s what we’re working on”.
Asked if French authorities could be doing more to stop the departures, she said more can be done through all European countries “along the supply chain” and the UK “has to be in partnership with those countries”.
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Small boat crossings reached this year’s high in October, with more than 5,000 people crossing.
Over the first two days of November, 433 people arrived in the UK via small boats.
In total, 31,904 people have made the journey so far this year, up 16.5% on the same point in 2023 (26,699) but still down 22.1% on the same point in 2022 (39,929).
Later this week, Sir Keir is expected to attend a summit of the European Political Community in Hungary, with migration and people smuggling expected to feature.
The PM will also announce a £6m increase in the UK’s support for Interpol to tackle global organised crime, and £24m to tackle serious international crime affecting the UK, particularly in the Western Balkans.
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A Conservative Party spokesperson said: “Keir Starmer’s announcement on tackling gangs will mean absolutely nothing without a deterrent to stop migrants wishing to make the dangerous journey across the Channel.
“It is a shame that Starmer has not recognised the extent of the crisis in the Channel sooner, as he and the Labour Party voted against numerous measures to stop the gangs while they were in opposition.
“If Starmer continues to ignore the need for a deterrent to stop migrants crossing the Channel, there will be more deaths in the Channel as more and more migrants continue to cross it. He needs to get a grip of the crisis in the Channel.”
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The return on Donald Trump to the G7 was always going to be unpredictable. That it is happening against the backdrop of an escalating conflict in the Middle East makes it even more so.
Expectations had already been low, with the Canadian hosts cautioning against the normal joint communique at the end of the summit, mindful that this group of leaders would struggle to find consensus.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney carefully laid down an agenda that was uncontroversial in a bid to avoid any blow-ups between President Trump and allies, who of late have been divided like never before – be it over tariffs and trade, Russia and Ukraine, or, more recently Israel’s conduct in Gaza.
But discussions around critical minerals and global supply chains will undoubtedly drop down the agenda as leaders convene at a precarious moment. Keir Starmer, on his way over to Canada for a bi-lateral meeting in Ottawa with PM Carney before travelling onto the G7 summit in Kananaskis, underscored the gravity of the situation as he again spoke of de-escalation, while also confirmed that the UK was deploying more British fighter jets to the region amid threats from Tehran that it will attack UK bases if London helps defend Israel against airstrikes.
Canadian PM Mark Carney is greeted by President Donald Trump at the White House in May. Pic: AP
Really this is a G7 agenda scrambled as world leaders scramble to de-escalate the worst fighting between Tel Aviv and Tehran in decades. President Trump has for months been urging Israel not to strike Iran as he worked towards a diplomatic deal to halt uranium enrichment. Further talks had been due on Sunday – but are now not expected to go ahead.
All eyes will be on Trump in the coming days, to see if the US – Israel’s closest ally – will call on Israel to rein in its assault. The US has so far not participated in any joint attacks with Tel Aviv, but is moving warships and other military assets to the Middle East.
Sir Keir, who has managed to strike the first trade deal with Trump, will want to leverage his “good relationship” with the US leader at the G7 to press for de-escalation in the Middle East, while he also hopes to use the summit to further discuss the further the interests of Ukraine with Trump and raise again the prospects of Russian sanctions.
“We’ve got President Zelenskyy coming so that provides a good opportunity for us to discuss again as a group,” the PM told me on the flight over to Canada. “My long-standing view is, we need to get Russia to the table for an unconditional ceasefire. That’s not been really straightforward. But we do need to be clear about what we need to get to the table and that if that doesn’t happen, sanctions will undoubtedly be part of the discussion at the G7.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer (R) is greeted by Mark Carney as he arrives in Ottawa ahead of the G7
But that the leaders are not planning for a joint communique – a document outlining what the leaders have agreed – tells you a lot. When they last gathered with Trump in Canada for the G7 back in 2018, the US president rather spectacularly fell out with Justin Trudeau when the former Canadian president threatened to retaliate against US tariffs and refused to sign the G7 agreement.
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Since then, Trump has spoken of his desire to turn Canada into the 51st state of the US, a suggestion that helped catapult the Liberal Party beyond their Conservative rivals and back into power in the recent Canadian elections, as Mark Carney stood on a ticket of confronting Trump’s aggression.
With so much disagreement between the US and allies, it is hard to see where progress might be made over the next couple of days. But what these leaders will agree on is the need to take down the temperature in the Middle East and for all the unpredictability around these relationships, what is certain is a sense of urgency around Iran and Israel that could find these increasingly disparate allies on common ground.
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