UK immigration enforcement teams made over 600 arrests in January, marking a 73% rise from the same period last year, as part of the Labour government’s crackdown on undocumented migration and people-smuggling networks, officials announced Monday.
A total of 609, just above 600, arrests were made at more than 800 locations—including nail salons, restaurants, car washes, and convenience stores—compared to 352 in January 2024, according to a government statement.
Upon taking office last year, Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer immediately scrapped former Conservative leader Rishi Sunak’s plan to deter undocumented migration by deporting new arrivals to Rwanda. Instead, he pledged to dismantle criminal smuggling operations to curb migration numbers.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper criticized employers for exploiting undocumented migrants and allowing them to work illegally without facing consequences.
“We are ramping up enforcement to unprecedented levels, alongside tough new legislation, to dismantle the criminal networks that have long threatened our border security,” she said.
Undocumented migration—particularly individuals making the dangerous journey across the English Channel in small boats—was a central issue in last July’s general election, which brought Labour to power.
Since the election, nearly 19,000 failed asylum seekers, foreign criminals, and immigration offenders have been deported following intensified enforcement by the Home Office—the highest number since 2018.
Legal migration, which reached a record-high estimate of 728,000 in the year leading up to June 2024, was also a key election issue.
Facing pressure to reduce both legal and undocumented migration, Starmer must counter the rising influence of the anti-immigration Reform UK party, led by Nigel Farage, which garnered around four million votes in the July 4 elections—an unprecedented success for a far-right party.
Provisional figures from the interior ministry show that 36,816 people crossed the Channel last year, a 25% increase from 2023’s total of 29,437.
To address the issue, Starmer has launched a new Border Security Command and strengthened partnerships with European agencies such as Europol. The UK has also signed joint action plans with Germany and Iraq to combat smuggling gangs, building on previous agreements with France and Albania.
The new Border Security, Asylum, and Immigration Bill—designed to grant law enforcement “counter-terror style powers” to dismantle smuggling gangs—is set for its second reading in Parliament on Monday.
