A second person who had been removed to France under the government’s “one in, one out” agreement has returned to the UK, the Home Office confirmed. The unnamed man arrived after joining nearly 400 people who crossed the Channel in small boats on Sunday.
Home Office biometric checks identified him as one of the 94 people removed to France under the UK–France treaty over the past two months. He was detained immediately and the department said he would be returned to France “as quickly as possible”.
He is the second to come back after removal, following an Iranian man who arrived on 18 October. The return came less than a month after he was among the first removed under the deal.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “Anyone looking to return to the UK after being removed under the UK–France agreement is wasting their time and money. This individual was detected by biometrics and detained immediately. His case will be expedited, and he will be returned to France as quickly as possible. The message is clear: if you try to return to the UK you will be sent back. We will do whatever it takes to scale up removals of illegal migrants and secure our borders.”
Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, said the government was “mired in migrant chaos and has clearly lost control of our borders”, adding that since the French returns deal was announced only a handful have been returned to France while around 20,000 have arrived — “99.5% are being allowed to stay and only 0.5% returned to France.”
The Home Office has not confirmed the exact number who arrived on Sunday but it was estimated to be nearly 400. They followed 1,772 people who crossed in 25 boats on Thursday, Friday and Saturday as people smugglers took advantage of calmer Channel conditions.
Under the “one in, one out” scheme, UK officials detain some arrivals and send them back to France. In return for each person removed, the UK accepts an asylum seeker in France who can show family connections in Britain. The deal was announced in July by Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron; speaking at a joint press conference the prime minister said: “There is no silver bullet here, but with a united effort, new tactics and a new level of intent, we can finally turn the tables.”
