After the two countries had a tense exchange on the number of immigrants crossing the English Channel to Britain, Priti Patel met with French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin.
The talks broke down on Wednesday afternoon, followed by The influx of boats in warm weather this week, Increased the pressure on the Secretary of the Interior from Downing Street and other members of her party.
According to the statement on the talks issued by the Home Office, Patel “clearly stated that delivering results and blocking border crossings are the absolute priority of the British people, and that tackling the scourge of illegal immigration and organized crime networks is a common challenge, not a country. It can be solved separately”.
Earlier, the department said that 785 people crossed the English Channel in small boats on Monday, down from the record daily total of 828 migrants last month.
Patel began a war of words on Monday when she told MPs that Britain could withhold the 54.2 million pounds promised to pay France To help deal with this situation, unless more ships are intercepted.
Conservative MPs called on the Secretary of the Interior to violate international law and send all immigrants who arrived illegally by boat directly back to France.
The French Interior Ministry retorted in detail on Tuesday, warning Britain not to try any action that violates international law, saying that if Britain refuses to hand over the cash agreed in July to combat the transit of small boats, there will be “consequences.”
The ministry stated that the transaction was “detailed negotiations with the British side” and “there has never been any issue with target payment as a condition…this approach will reflect a serious loss of confidence in our cooperation.”
This year there were a record 13,500 migrants crossing the strait in small boats, 1,000 of them in the past two days. When 742 people arrived in the UK on Monday, the French prevented 200 people from crossing the border.
The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that since January, after deploying “a large and increasing amount of resources”, it has blocked more than one-half of the border crossing points, that is, more than 10,000 migrants. It also doubled the resources of southern France to solve the problem of migration across the Mediterranean.
French Calais MP Pierre-Henri Dumont accused Patel of trying to use British taxpayers’ money to put pressure on French authorities.
“We are just doing our job and trying to save lives in the strait and make sure it does not become a cemetery,” he said. “The UK needs to address the reasons that cause people to want to apply for asylum in the UK. Many of them are from the former British colonies.”
Conservative MPs who lobbied Patel to return the ship directly to France on Monday were criticized by refugee activists.
Minnie Rahman, campaign director of the Joint Commission on Immigration Welfare, said: “The MP’s suggestion is that the government takes illegal action to send people to France without first processing their claims. The hysterical dog whistle response does not help seek asylum. People get the protection they need.
“The only way to end these journeys is for the government to share the responsibilities with France and ensure that people can travel to the UK safely.”
