It comes as the combined total number of boat crossings over the summer months has dropped to its lowest since 2019. Smugglers are now believed to be loading more migrants onto fewer, larger vessels as ministers claim the crackdown on small boats and smuggling gangs is working. So what do you think? Is France doing enough to stop migrants heading to UK on small boats? Vote in our poll and join the debate in the comments section.
Ahead of the talks with Mr Macron, the Prime Minister said the UK and France must “stay one step ahead” of smuggling gangs, which are “constantly adapting their tactics”.
“The UK and France need to respond quickly and stay one step ahead of the criminals facilitating the dangerous crossings,” he said.
“The small boats crisis is a shared European challenge, and no country can solve it alone. Working with France and our international partners, we will restore order and control to our borders and prevent smugglers exploiting vulnerable migrants.”
The “surge team” will cover places such as Le Touquet, Berck, Le Tréport and Dieppe.
Downing Street said the reinforcements will triple the number of UK-funded officers in the area.
People smugglers shifted some of their launch sites west after French police intensified patrols around Calais and Dunkirk.
Criminal gangs have forced migrants to spend as long as 18 hours on inflatable dinghies after launching from Dieppe, Normandy, and making numerous pick-ups from different beaches.
Smugglers are increasingly resorting to so-called mega dinghies to illegally ferry migrants to the UK.
The Daily Express is aware of one dinghy — carrying 173 people — that sank off the coast of Boulogne after launching from Dieppe.
The surge team is expected to be deployed in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, a specialist French intelligence and judicial team seeking to root out and prosecute smuggling networks has grown from 18 to 30 officers.
A new 75-strong unit focused on curbing crossings has also begun operations in northern France, taking the total number of officers to nearly 1,050.
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