“The generous thing is to prevent them from drowning”

The French Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau, announced this Friday “a fight” with the United Kingdom to modify the conditions of control of clandestine trafficking in the English Channelwhere more than 70 people have died trying to reach British shores so far this year.

On the eve of meeting with his British counterpart, Yvette Cooper, the French head of the Interior indicated that Brexit requires that the border relationship be modified between both countries regarding the control of migratory flows, according to reports Efe.

“The relationship between France and the United Kingdom cannot be summarized as an externalization,” said the French minister, who considered that his country cannot be “the guardian of the British border.”

The tension at that point has been increasing and Retailleau indicated that he is willing to end the 2003 agreements that regulate that relationship, by which London pays a fee to Paris for border control.

But France now considers these commitments insufficient and believes that the United Kingdom must commit itself more to the fight against irregular immigration, which generates significant material damage on its coasts.

Retailleau considered that negotiations must be opened to establish a new relationship that also includes the European Unionwhich is the one who must ultimately agree on border relations after Brexit.

With 72 immigrants dead in the English Channel, according to data from the Prefecture, 2024 is the most dramatic year since small boats began to appear in 2018 in which illegal immigrants try to reach the British coasts by this means of intense maritime traffic.

El ministro francés, partidario de una mano dura en la lucha contra la inmigración, excluyó mejorar las condiciones de acogida de los inmigrantes en su país para evitar un “efecto llamada”. “Solo la firmeza puede solucionar las cosas. La auténtica generosidad es impedir que se ahoguen“, dijo.

Retailleau anunció el nombramiento de un prefecto para las costas y de un enviado especial sobre la inmigración, además de 200 personas suplementarias para reforzar el personal de acogida y control en la frontera.

Esos anuncios se producen en un momento en el que la extrema derecha reclama más firmeza contra la inmigración al Ejecutivo, cuya supervivencia depende de sus votos parlamentarios.