Staff at Manston migrant processing centre in Kent have been asked to work overtime due to concerns about not having enough staff on duty, amid a record number of small boat arrivals. On Saturday, over 1,100 migrants crossed the Channel, with 18 boats arriving and bringing the provisional annual total so far to 14,811.
The recent surge in crossings is 42% higher than last year’s numbers at this point (10,448) and 95% up from 2023’s figures (7,610). However, it remains lower than the highest daily total of 1,305 arrivals since data began in 2018.
Staff shortages, particularly for night shifts, have been a long-running concern at Manston. The centre has faced criticism for keeping people seeking refuge in the UK in squalid and unsafe conditions. Defence Secretary John Healey blamed the government’s failure to control its borders over the past five years, saying it had left an asylum system in chaos.
A recent report found that the number of children jailed for crossing the Channel in small boats has doubled in the last year. The report calls for an end to the criminalisation of people who have no way of claiming asylum in the UK other than travelling via dinghy or in the back of a lorry.
Home Office sources say they are introducing new laws to increase action against people-smuggling gangs, disrupt their business models, and strengthen border security. The government also promised to boost its ability to identify, disrupt, and dismantle criminal gangs.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/jun/01/manston-staff-overtime-record-number-small-boat-arrivals