Migrants attempting to reach the UK were teargassed by French police on Tuesday morning – as No 10 admitted the situation in the English Channel was getting worse.
Officers took action after hundreds of people gathered on Gravelines beach, near Calais, and then rushed towards a single dinghy floating just offshore.
However, authorities stood by and watched as some of them, undeterred by the gas, waded into the water intent on boarding the boat to risk the Channel crossing.
The scenes unfolded just hours after a meeting between Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron in Canada to address the situation, which No 10 described as “deteriorating”.
More than 16,300 people have crossed the Channel in small boats so far in 2025, a 43% increase on the same period in 2024.
Migrants who ran into the sea at Gravelines had to wait in waist-deep water for almost an hour before they were able to board the dinghy.
An older man on crutches had to be carried out of the water by two others, who then ran back to rejoin the crowd.
Many others did not make it to the water, raising their arms in surrender under a thick blanket of tear gas fired by the French Police Nationale.
A warning cry of “baby, baby” was heard as a man carrying a small child sprinted out of the smog.
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One Afghani migrant, who wished to remain anonymous, said he was seeking a better life in the UK as the situation was “bad” in his country.
More than 50 migrants made it aboard the dinghy before it finally began its journey across the Channel. Others were left to watch as it floated out to sea.
A woman was seen sitting on the sand after chasing the dinghy as it left the beach.
She and her friends, thought to be Ethiopian, complained afterwards that it was mostly men who had managed to get on the boat.
However, despite the vessel departing, witnesses saw the dinghy being brought back to shore about an hour and a half later.
The police present on the beach would not confirm whether the use of tear gas had now become common practice in such cases.
The prime minister and Mr Macron will hold a summit in July focused on tackling the issue, No 10 said after the pair met on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada.
An official readout of the meeting stated that the two leaders had agreed that “migration should be a key focus given the deteriorating situation in the Channel” and that “they should continue to work closely with other partners to find innovative ways to drive forward progress.”
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Downing Street said there were “no quick fixes”, but said action was already being taken and “the days of Britain being a soft touch for these [people-smuggling] gangs are over”.
It said that included measures aimed at getting the French authorities to intervene even if migrants were already in the sea.
Asked if the government approved of the use of tear gas, a No 10 spokesman said: “Our work with the French has never been closer.
“We are the first government to have secured agreement from the French to review their laws so their border enforcement teams can intervene in shallow waters.”
