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Undocumented Migrants: English Channel

Asked by Lee AndersonReform UKHome OfficeTabled Answered 13 January 2026UIN 103421

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people who have crossed the English Channel in small boats have been linked to proscribed terrorist groups in each of the last three years.

Answered by Dan Jarvis

The first priority of Government is protecting national security and the safety of UK citizens. All applications for UK immigration status, including for all those arriving through illegal migration routes, are subject to comprehensive checks.

It would not be appropriate to comment in detail on operational security matters or specific cases. However, where an individual is assessed as presenting a risk to our country, we take swift and robust action.

The Home Office uses various tools to detect and disrupt travel by criminals, by those posing a national security risk, and by individuals excluded from the UK or previously deported from the UK.

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