London, Jan 29 : British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will clinch a new border security agreement with China to stem the flow of Chinese-made small boat parts used by smuggling gangs to illegally transport migrants into the UK, Downing Street said on Thursday.
During his ongoing visit to Beijing this week, Starmer held “productive” talks with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang to reset bilateral relations after a tense few years.
Besides the prospect of lower Scotch whisky export tariffs and visa-free travel for British travellers to China, both sides are set for the first joint UK-China law enforcement action before Chinese boats and engines can reach criminal networks in Europe.
“Organised immigration crime and the business model of the smuggling gangs goes beyond borders and our approach to shut them down must do the same,” said Starmer, in a statement released by 10 Downing Street in London.
“This deal will help us cut off the supply of boats at source – stopping crossings before lives are put at risk and restoring control to our borders. This is Britain back at the top table, delivering real results for the British people through our international relationships,” he said.
According to official UK government statistics, more than 60 per cent of all engines used by smuggling gangs last year were found to be branded as Chinese manufactured engines.
Inflatable dinghies used in small boat crossings across the English Channel, often made using parts sourced in China, have been enabling gangs to pack ever larger numbers onto single vessels, with recent crossings carrying over 100 people in increasingly life-threatening conditions, Downing Street said.
Under the new border security agreement, UK law enforcement agencies are expected to work with Chinese authorities to prevent small boat engines and equipment used in Channel crossings getting into the hands of criminal gangs. This includes intelligence sharing to identify smugglers’ supply routes and direct engagement with Chinese manufacturers to prevent legitimate businesses being exploited by organised crime.
Both countries are said to have also agreed to “scale up” removals of those with no right to be in the UK and intensify a crackdown on Chinese gangs producing synthetic opioids.
“This agreement will enable us to work with Chinese law enforcement to tackle those gangs who exploit the most vulnerable, and prevent legitimate companies being drawn into this criminality. We are committed to working with them constructively going forward,” said Rick Jones, Deputy Director at the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA).
UK government officials said the deal will also strengthen cooperation on serious and organised crime, driving a crackdown on the production and trafficking of highly potent and dangerous synthetic opioids such as nitazenes, known to be produced in China and exported to the UK – as well as the precursor chemicals used to make them.
These drugs have been responsible for over 750 deaths in the UK, impacting individuals and communities, and closer cooperation will reduce the amount of these lethal drugs entering Britain, officials said.
The pact with China is aimed at building on other international agreements already in place with France, Germany, Iraq and Western Balkan countries to tackle the issue of soaring illegal migration through precarious and unsafe routes.
