LONDON (Reuters) – Britain and France are set to agree a deal possibly as soon as Monday to ramp up their joint efforts to stop illegal migrants from making perilous crossings of the English Channel, a British newspaper reported on Saturday.
The agreement will significantly increase the 200 French officers and volunteers who operate on Channel beaches and France will aim for a “much higher” proportion of migrants to be prevented from leaving, the Telegraph newspaper said.
France will agree to a joint control centre where British immigration officials will be stationed, it said.
On Friday, British foreign minister James Cleverly and French counterpart Catherine Colonna issued a statement stressing the “urgency of tackling all forms of illegal migration.” British officials have said a deal is close.
British and French government officials declined to comment on the reports on Saturday.
The Express newspaper said a deal could be signed in the next week and was likely include more British drones to detect migrants hiding in sand dunes before they attempt the dangerous crossings often in flimsy dinghies.
So far this year, about 40,000 people have crossed the Channel in small boats, up from 28,526 last year, putting pressure on new British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to find a way to slow the flow.
Relations between Britain and France have improved since Sunak took office last month after souring under former prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss who questioned whether French President Emmanuel Macron was a friend or foe during her campaign to become prime minister.
(Reporting by William Schomberg in London, additional reporting by John Irish in Paris, Editing by Ros Russell)
