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Germany and the UK have agreed to tighten laws against people smuggling as part of a new plan between the two countries. Currently, it is not illegal in Germany to facilitate people smuggling to a third country outside the EU, which the UK now falls under following Brexit. However, under the new agreement, Germany will make the activity a clear criminal offence.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper referred to the new agreement as “ground-breaking” and highlighted its importance in tackling criminal gangs organising small boat crossings across the Channel. The Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp has previously criticised the UK’s plans to reduce small boat crossings, labelling them as “weak and vacuous.”
Channel crossings have become increasingly dangerous, with over 33,000 people crossing the English Channel this year, causing more than 70 deaths. The average number of people per boat increased to 53 this year, compared with 10 in 2019. The Labour government aims to tackle the criminal gangs that manage these crossings, with Cooper signing an agreement with Germany’s Interior Minister Nancy Faeser as part of this approach.
The agreement, termed the Joint Action Plan, commits the two countries to “exchanging expertise with a special focus on removing migrant-smuggling content from social media platforms.” Additionally, Germany has committed to making clear that activities within its borders facilitating migrant-smuggling to the UK will be deemed a criminal offence, once the law is passed. The UK government has described the upcoming law as a significant boost to the number of prosecutions made
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