French rescue 108 migrants trying to sail to UK

Officials say four boats were in trouble in the English Channel

French authorities on Wednesday rescued more than 100 migrants trying to sail to England after their four boats got into trouble in the Channel.

Last week the British government said a record of at least 482 migrants crossed from France to England in a single day, putting annual figures way above last year's.

Maritime officials in France said on Wednesday that a navy patrol boat rescued seven people aboard a vessel "in difficulty" off the coast of Sangatte and took them to the port of Dunkirk.

The patrol boat was then sent to rescue 29 "shipwrecked" migrants off the coast of Dunkirk, including one who was ill and taken by helicopter for medical care, the area's maritime administration said.

The remainder were also taken to Dunkirk.

Thirty-seven other migrants were rescued from a boat in difficulty off the coast of Calais and another 35 off Dunkirk, the officials said.

Attempts to cross the Channel have been increasing since the end of 2018, despite official warnings about the dangers of collisions in one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, strong currents and extremely cold water.

Last month's crossings took the annual number past 10,000, far more than the 8,500 people the government said arrived in the whole of 2020, PA reported.

The growing number of journeys are proving embarrassing for the UK government, which has pledged to clamp down on the arrivals and made tightening Britain's borders a key issue in its campaign to leave the EU.