Channel crossings: Six boats with 132 migrants on board picked up

Six small boats with 132 people crossed the English Channel on Tuesday, the Home Office has said.

French authorities prevented 57 people on six boats from making the crossing.

More than 1,732 people have made the crossing so far this year, with 371 crossing in small boats in April.

The Home Office said more than 2,000 people have been prevented from making the crossing this year and there have been more than 60 prosecutions relating to small boats since the start of 2020.

Seven boats with 113 people were picked up off the Kent coast on Monday,

The government is planning to make it more difficult for asylum seekers to stay in the UK if they come illegally.

Under the plans, people who enter the UK illegally to claim asylum will no longer have the same entitlements as those who arrive legally.

Campaigners say the proposals would create an unfair system and would not address people smuggling.

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