Rwanda deal failing to deter small boat crossings with thousands making journey

Crossings running level to same point in record 2022 despite ministers’ claims of ‘deterrence’

Home secretary Suella Braverman with Rwandan minister for foreign affairs Vincent Biruta in Kigali last month (PA)

The Rwanda deal is failing to deter asylum seekers from crossing the English Channel a year after it was signed, figures show.

Almost 5,000 people have made the journey so far in 2023, almost exactly the same figure seen by the same point in 2022.

No crossings have been made in the past two days because of rough seas and gales in the Channel, but arrivals are expected to rocket when the weather calms.