England Returns Migrants To Slavery Victims To France On Boat

ILLUSTRATION OF UNSPLASH/Klea Nemenaj

JAKARTA - One of the first migrants to be returned to France under a "one entry, one exit" agreement the British government has returned to Britain on a small boat.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron last July agreed on an agreement for Britain to deport some people without documents arriving across the UK Strait returning to France in exchange for accepting asylum seekers in the same numbers as the British family.

Starmer said the "bove" deal would act as a deterrent and help fulfill its promise to "destroy gangs" and reduce the arrival of small boats.

The unnamed migrants told the Guardian newspaper he was a victim of modern slavery at the hands of human smugglers in Northern France.

The news of the return of the migrants emerged when the number of arrivals by small boats so far this year reached 36,954, surpassing a total of 36,816 in 2024 and making 2025 the second-highest year on record after 2022.

About 42 people have been sent home so far in the trial phase of the "one in, one out" scheme, the government said on Sunday.

The man's return 29 days after being deported made headlines on the front page of the British newspaper on Thursday, with the main title "One coming in, one coming out and coming back again" in four titles and "Le Farce" in the Daily Mail.

Junior minister Josh MacAlister said on Thursday the man would be deported again.

"This guy initially came, shouldn't have come, smuggled and paid a lot of money for it, then returned to France," he told Sky News.

"Has done the same thing again. He has paid again, and he will be returned again. We will make sure that happens," he said.