French accused of blood on their hands after migrant deaths in Channel horror

The French have been accused of having “blood on their hands” after failing to intercept two separate fatal migrant crossings in less than a day.

Three asylum seekers, including two children, died after chaos broke out on an overcrowded boat near Calais. Laurent Touvet, the regional prefect, said they were “likely crushed at the bottom of the boat”.

The Abeille Normandie rescued 44 people, while 28 others refused help and carried on towards UK waters. Three more are feared dead after being reported missing during a separate attempt.

Touvet revealed smugglers had launched a vessel carrying 115 people on Tuesday, one of the largest ever seen. Just hours earlier, a woman had died when a dinghy deflated as it reached UK waters. The Coastguard issued a Mayday call asking nearby vessels to help.

Witnesses told the Daily Express that French ships had been trailing the dinghy for hours but did not intervene when it began sinking as it crossed into English waters. Instead, Border Force, the RNLI and a Coastguard helicopter rushed in to pull people from the water.

A source said: “The English vessels were waiting on the border. The French escort vessel was coming up with this dinghy. As it crossed the border, it seemed like it started to deflate rapidly. The English vessels rushed in to pick up the people out of the water”.

“The Dover lifeboat was launched and they assisted. But it seemed like the French didn’t pick anyone up. It is not a problem for them. In a life-threatening situation [and a Mayday call situation], there’s no worrying about whose territorial water it is.”

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp called the deaths “tragic” and blamed Labour for scrapping the Rwanda deterrent without a replacement. He said: “The only way to prevent these deaths is to stop the boats leaving in the first place. That means deterrence, removals, and a system that makes clear illegal entry will not work. Britain is paying France hundreds of millions to prevent these crossings, yet it seems the French are doing very little to help. The French have blood on their hands.”

Rescue teams pulled the female migrant from the water but she was declared dead after being flown to Dover. Hours later, emergency crews, including a French navy helicopter, were scrambled to another overcrowded boat off Pas-de-Calais. Forty-four people were rescued, but three were unresponsive and three more were taken to hospital. Authorities confirmed three deaths and said several people were still missing.

The French prefecture said: “Smuggler networks bear the responsibility for these tragedies. The State is determined to combat them.” A UK government spokesperson said: “We are aware of reports of an incident in the Channel in French territorial waters. French authorities are leading the response and investigation. We will not be commenting further at this stage.”

At least 20 people have died attempting Channel crossings this year. More than 30,800 have made the journey so far, up 37% on last year. French union chiefs have angered British officials by saying officers would refuse to intercept migrants in the water because it is too cold, complaining of poor training and lack of equipment.

Meanwhile, political pressure is mounting in Westminster. Labour’s Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has vowed to change human rights laws to allow deportations of criminals and failed asylum seekers. But Attorney General Lord Hermer appeared to undercut that pledge, describing attempts to reform the European Convention on Human Rights as a “political trick”.

He insisted Labour would “leave no stone unturned” in toughening up how the convention is applied but warned partners like France and Germany would walk away from migrant returns deals if the UK quit the ECHR.