Some 1,670 people crossed the English Channel in small boats in a week, after rough seas brought a three-week halt to crossings, Home Office figures show.

Provisional GOV.UK data records 263 arrivals on Thursday 29 October, 671 on Friday, 259 on Saturday and 477 on Sunday 1 November — 1,670 people on 23 boats. No arrivals were recorded on 2, 3 or 4 November.

The surge followed the longest pause in crossings this year, with high sea swell and wind keeping boats ashore for three weeks before launches resumed.

A milestone under the new prime minister

The weekend's arrivals took the total since Andy Burnham became prime minister on 20 July past 10,000, GB News analysis of the Home Office figures shows. The tally stands at 10,139 — an average of 97.5 a day.

The Home Office's weekly file puts the 2026 total at 21,869 to 30 October; adding the weekend's arrivals takes it past 22,600, GB News reports.

Crossings down on last year

Despite the week's surge, arrivals this year remain well below last year's pace. GB News puts the 2026 total at 22,608 so far, against 36,954 at the same point in 2025 — a fall of nearly 40%.

The Home Office points to the same trend. A spokesman said: "We have made progress tackling the small boats. Crossings are down significantly, and we have just recorded the lowest number of summer arrivals since 2020."

The government says joint work with partners has prevented more than 50,000 crossing attempts and seized 1,100 boats and engines since the election, and that it is boosting officer numbers in France.

Sources: GOV.UK, Migrants detected crossing the English Channel in small boats — last 7 days, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/migrants-detected-crossing-the-english-channel-in-small-boats/migrants-detected-crossing-the-english-channel-in-small-boats-last-7-days ; Prepared Britain small-boats tracker, https://www.preparedbritain.co.uk/trackers/small-boats ; GB News via Breaking Brexit News, 2 November 2026, https://breakingbrexitnews.com/2026/11/02/burnham-small-boats-10000/ .