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Calais migrant crisis: Theresa May signs deal with France Calais migrant crisis: Theresa May signs deal with France
(about 1 hour later)
Home Secretary Theresa May has signed a UK-French deal to tackle the Calais migrant crisis, as plans for a "control and command centre" are announced. The UK and France have signed an agreement on new measures, including a "control and command centre", to help alleviate the migrant crisis in Calais.
The centre will be jointly run by British and French police and will "relentlessly pursue" people smuggling gangs, Mrs May said. The centre will be jointly run by British and French police and will "relentlessly pursue" people-smuggling gangs, Home Secretary Theresa May said.
She also said she was "well aware" of the risk that Calais security would push illegal migrants elsewhere.She also said she was "well aware" of the risk that Calais security would push illegal migrants elsewhere.
Meanwhile migrant protests brought cars to a halt on a motorway in Calais.Meanwhile migrant protests brought cars to a halt on a motorway in Calais.
Riot police used tear gas to try to disperse the protest, BBC reporter Amanda Kirton said. The group was chanting "we are not animals" and "open the borders".
BBC reporter Amanda Kirton said police were sent to the motorway which overlooks the Calais migrant camp known as the "Jungle" to disperse the crowd, and tear gas was used.
About 3,000 migrants are thought to be camped in Calais in the hope of crossing the Channel.About 3,000 migrants are thought to be camped in Calais in the hope of crossing the Channel.
The home secretary said it had been a "difficult summer" with high levels of migrant activity and strike action in Calais, but joint efforts with the French government were working. Mrs May said it had been a "difficult summer" with high levels of migrant activity and strike action in Calais, but joint efforts with the French government were working.
'Functioning borders''Functioning borders'
She said the new command centre would "relentlessly pursue and disrupt the callous criminal gangs that facilitate and profit from the smuggling of vulnerable people, often with total disregard for their lives".She said the new command centre would "relentlessly pursue and disrupt the callous criminal gangs that facilitate and profit from the smuggling of vulnerable people, often with total disregard for their lives".
France and the UK would also work with other EU states to try to ensure there were "fully functioning external borders and an asylum system that is resistant to abuse," she said. The joint command centre, which will also incorporate the UK Border Force, will be led by two senior officers, one British and one French, each reporting to their own government.
Mrs May said France and the UK would also work with other EU states to try to ensure there were "fully functioning external borders and an asylum system that is resistant to abuse".
Her French counterpart, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, said asylum seekers should be welcomed "with dignity", but illegal immigrants would not be tolerated.Her French counterpart, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, said asylum seekers should be welcomed "with dignity", but illegal immigrants would not be tolerated.
"The joint statement that we have signed on behalf of our two governments constitutes a new and important illustration of this Franco-British co-operation which is particularly necessary given the gravity of the situation," he said. The joint deal also sets out other measures aimed at tackling the migrant crisis in Calais, including an extra 500 police from the UK and France.
The Home Office said the joint command centre, which will also incorporate the UK Border Force, would enable greater collaboration between countries. There will also be additional freight search teams, including sniffer dogs.
It will be led by two senior officers, one British and one French, who will each report to their own government. During a tour of the Eurotunnel site in Coquelles, Mrs May said the UK had begun talks with Belgium and the Netherlands, as the UK was "very well aware of the possibility of displacement" of people trafficking to other places due to increased security at Calais.
The joint deal also sets out other measures aimed at tackling the migrant crisis in Calais, including: Security at other northern French ports, such as Dunkirk, was being scrutinised, she added.
Earlier, Mrs May toured the Eurotunnel site in Coquelles with Mr Cazeneuve to inspect security measures.
Speaking to reporters, she said Britain had begun talks with Belgium and the Netherlands, as the UK government was "very well aware of the possibility of displacement" of people trafficking operations after security was strengthened at Calais.
Security measures at other northern French ports, such as Dunkirk, were also being scrutinised, she said.
Former Home Office minister and Ashford MP Damian Green said the causes of migration needed to be tackled, as well as practical measures to "keep the roads running".
"Particularly countries that aren't torn by civil war but just have desperate economic conditions, you can help them, that's the root cause of the problem."
Asylum applications
The situation in Calais is part of a much larger migration issue in Europe.
More than 240,000 migrants have crossed the Mediterranean already this year, arriving on the shores of Greece and Italy.
Germany and Sweden have seen a sharp rise in asylum applications, with the German government saying it expects 800,000 applications by the end of this year.
Madeleine Sumption, director of the Migration Observatory at Oxford University, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that compared to 200,000 asylum applications in Germany last year, the UK had just over 30,000.
Migrant crisisMigrant crisis
Read more: Why is there a crisis in Calais?Read more: Why is there a crisis in Calais?