First images of migrants set for deportation under landmark 'one in, one out' UK-France returns deal
The first images of migrants detained under the government's landmark 'one in, one out' deal with France have been released ahead of their deportation by the Home Office.
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The newly released footage shows migrants being detained and their journeys through the first stages of the UK-France returns pilot process.
Wednesday marked the first day the “one in, one out” deal with France came into force.
The videos released by the Home Office on Thursday show migrants' initial processing, biometric and security checks and relocation to an Immigration Removal Centre to await their return to France have been captured.
It follows pictures released showing the migrants wearing life jackets as they disembark from Border Force boats.
Those detained will be held in immigration removal centres until they are returned to France, with the Home Office highlighting their movements will not be updated in real-time.
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It comes as Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “Yesterday, under the terms of this groundbreaking new treaty, the first group of people to cross the Channel were detained after their arrival at Western Jet Foil and will now be held in detention until they can be returned to France.
“That sends a message to every migrant currently thinking of paying organised crime gangs to go to the UK that they will be risking their lives and throwing away their money if they get into a small boat.”
It added the Home Office will make referrals to France within three days, with the French having 12 days to respond under the terms of the new deal.
French authorities will then respond within 14 days in exchange for an approved asylum seeker in France to be brought to the UK under a safe route.
This process has now also been launched, with adults and families in France able to express an interest in coming to the UK through an online platform set up by the Home Office.
They will have to meet suitability criteria, standard visa application process and security checks. If accepted, they would be given three months in the UK to claim asylum or apply for a visa, and would be subject to the same rules for all asylum seekers not allowed to work, study or have access to benefits.
One video, out of the four released by the Home Office, shows make migrants, with their faces blurred, sitting together and awaiting processing.
Another shows them carrying blue bags filled with their belongings and they head inside a detention centre.
The footage also shows those detained undergoing medical assessed at Western Jet Foil in Dover.
Video also showed men taken to Manston processing centre, wearing dark grey tracksuit jumpers and bottoms, being screened by Border Force officers.
Under the pilot scheme, adults arriving on a small boat can be detained and returned to France for the first time.
The Home Office said detentions began for those who arrived on Wednesday afternoon and they will be held in immigration removal centres until they are returned to France.
It added the Home Office will make referrals to France within three days, with the French having 12 days to respond under the terms of the new deal.
The Home Office is expected to launch a campaign in the coming days to make migrants in northern France and elsewhere aware of the new treaty.
Ms Cooper added: “Criminal gangs have spent seven years embedding themselves along our border and it will take time to unravel them, but these detentions are an important step towards undermining their business model and unravelling the false promises they make.”
The Home Secretary has previously said the accord is not a “silver bullet” to stop small boat crossings, but marked a step change as migrants will be sent back across the Channel for the first time.Ministers have rejected criticism that the returns deal leaves open a loophole for human rights laws to be exploited for migrants to avoid deportation.
Efforts to crack down on illegal working and remove migrants with no right to be in the UK from the country are continuing as ministers grapple to curb the crossings.
