London and Paris unveiled a “pilot” programme on Thursday to return to France some of the migrants arriving in the UK on small boats across the Channel, as President Emmanuel Macron wrapped up his state visit.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the deal, hammered out during the French leader’s three-day visit, “groundbreaking” and capable of stemming the record numbers of people who have embarked on the perilous journey so far this year.
In a joint press conference with Macron, he disclosed that the it is a “groundbreaking”, because it is a scheme intended to break the model.