According to a study, 67% of Conservative Party supporters believe that confrontation with France will be more effective than cooperation in combating the smuggling of migrants in small boats. Among supporters of Reform UK, 79% hold this view. At the same time, among supporters of the Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats, only 24% consider confrontation with France to be a more effective approach. Among supporters of the Green Party, this figure is 19%. The majority of voters from the last three parties, on the contrary, believe that the issue of illegal crossings is better addressed through closer cooperation with French authorities. The survey also revealed a significant discrepancy between public perception and statistics. 40% of Britons mistakenly believe that the number of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats has increased this year compared to last year. Actual data indicates the opposite. Since the beginning of 2026, 15,897 migrants have crossed the English Channel - this is 43% less than in the same period last year. Moreover, the current figure is the lowest for this period since 2021 and is 26% below the average for the past four years. The issue of migration remains one of the most pressing topics in British politics. In particular, the leader of Reform UK previously promised that, if elected, he would conduct a large-scale military operation in the English Channel to stop the flow of asylum seekers. In France, such an initiative has been criticized, stating that such actions could violate French sovereignty as well as maritime and international law.
