‘Shameful’ 41,000 people reached UK by small boat last year, says Home Office

Crossings were running at the highest level on record for much of 2025, but the pace slowed in the last two months. Photograph: Gareth Fuller/PA

More than 41,000 people crossed the Channel in small boats last year, figures branded “shameful” by the Home Office have revealed.

The government said 41,472 people arrived in the UK by crossing the Channel in 2025 – the second highest number on record after 45,774 made the journey in 2022.