First migrants arrive in UK from France under 'one in one out' deal

A family of three, including a small child, have become the first people to arrive in Britain under a "one-in, one-out" deal with France.

The UK struck a deal with France to create a legal route for asylum seekers to dissuade people from trying to cross the Channel in small boats.

Under the terms, Britain will accept people who make legitimate claims in France - and who have never attempted to make the crossing before.

In return, France will take back an equivalent number of migrants who have crossed to Britain in flimsy crafts - in a "one-in, one-out" pact. The first four people have been deported to France in recent days as part of the agreement.

It comes as part of Keir Starmer's efforts to smash the business model of criminal gangs behind the dangerous crossings, which resulted in at least 78 deaths in 2024.

The UK-France deal, which came into force last month, allows the Government to detain people who arrived in small boats and to deport them before they end up in the asylum system.

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Following the arrival of the first people from France, a Home Office spokesperson said: “The UK-France deal is a historic agreement, and these are critical first steps. This is a clear message to people-smuggling gangs that illegal entry into the UK will not be tolerated.

"We will continue to detain and remove those who arrive by small boat.

"And we will work with France to operate a legal route for an equal number of eligible migrants to come to the UK subject to security checks."

It comes as the Government battles to stem the flow of people making the perilous journey to Britain in small boats.

Some 32,188 people have arrived in Britain by small boat so far in 2025, with more than 1,000 in a single day last Friday, after returns to Paris commenced under the deal.

Ministers hope the deportations will discourage asylum seekers from paying smugglers to help them make the journey to the UK.

The Government intends to increase the number of people being sent back under the pilot agreement, which runs initially until June next year.

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