CRIMINAL gangs behind the small boats scandal have raked in nearly half a billion pounds since the Channel crisis began, figures reveal.
More than 114,300 people have made the treacherous crossing since 2018, paying an average of £4,000 per head for each journey.
The amount of money made from the crisis has "skyrocketed" from just over £1million in 2018 when 299 people made the trip, according to Labour's analysis of small boat figures.
It says a record 45,755 people crossed the Channel in 2022, enriching the smugglers by an estimated £183million.
But the true amount earned could be even higher, because the analysis does not include cash paid to gangs by would-be migrants who were brought back to France by that country's coastguard.
Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said: "The Conservatives have allowed an entire multimillion pound dangerous criminal industry to grow up along our border over the past six years.
"Criminals are making big money from putting tens of thousands of lives at risk, and making a mockery of UK border security."
She pledged that her party's plan would "strengthen our border security, hitting hard at the heart of the criminal gangs, going after their whole network, including the money, in order to increase prosecutions and stop their dangerous trade in people's lives".
Last year alone, organised crime made an estimated £117,748,000 from nearly 30,000 people who came across the Channel.
Labour believes that since 2018, £457,288,000 has gone into the pockets of people smugglers.
Labour's intervention on small boats is the latest sign that Sir Keir Starmer's party intends to "park its tanks" on traditional Tory turf.
Bu hikaye Sunday Express dergisinin January 07, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Sunday Express dergisinin January 07, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Ligt at end of ETH tunnel
GOAL AFTER PENALTY MISS A HUGE TURNING POINT
Warning over cut-price surgery after six deaths
BUDGET cosmetic surgery in Turkey has prompted an official warning from the Government, after at least six British patients died last year.
MP Aphra: Dad Gyles is biggest fan
TORY MP Aphra Brandreth has called her father Gyles “her biggest champion”, after she won his former seat at July’s General Election.
Border vessel 'sits idle' as migrants cross the Channel
A BORDER Force vessel has been sitting idle at Dover for cleaning, despite huge numbers of migrants risking their lives to cross the Channel.
Cover-ups in the NHS must stop
HEALTH Secretary Wes Streeting has vowed to end a “culture of coverup” in the NHS.
Heroic pilot who would sacrifice his life to save comrades in dire need
THIS WEEK is the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Arnhem, one of the major encounters of the Second World War. For movie enthusiasts it will always be linked to the 1977 film A Bridge Too Far, directed by Richard Attenborough. Here, LORD ASHCROFT looks back on a real-life story of 'supreme valour and self-sacrifice' from Operation Market Garden.
Museum visitors took Klan selfies
COMPLAINTS about people posing for selfies with a Ku Klux Klan outfit on a mannequin has led a slavery museum to rethink its display.
Paw me a pint! Best pubs for dogs revealed
WHEN you want to buy a round for your hounds, a pub in Nottingham leads the pack – having just been crowned Britain’s best dog-friendly pub.
Boring, snooty, rude and nice ...Norton's verdict on stars
BRUTALLY honest Graham Norton has revealed his best and worst chat show guests ever – with both Robert De Niro and Madonna coming up short.
Trailing Trump in new refugee attack
DONALD Trump has come under fire for vowing to “liberate” US cities and order “large” deportations of illegal immigrants if he is elected – starting with one where he claims starving Haitians are eating pets.