Latest EU data for Starmer shows the queue to escape from the EU to the UK remains substantial

While the EU can’t control its borders, the migrants will keep on coming to the UK

Part I of a devastating two-part report on the EU and French dimensions to the UK’s migrant crisis

Sir Keir Starmer talks about stopping the number of illegal migrants coming to the UK by tackling the problem “upstream”, meaning in the source countries in Africa and the Middle East. Meanwhile the numbers keep on massing in the EU, due to its porous borders. This report indicates the size of the problem and how Sir Keir might start by being a little firmer with countries closer to home.

In Part I today we start by reviewing the situation in the EU as a whole, and show why the number of illegal migrants coming to the UK is unlikely to fall anytime soon. This report is also being covered in association with GB News and you can read what they have written here. In Part II of this report on Thursday we will reveal the truly shocking situation in France and why President Macron is only too happy to see the record numbers crossing to the UK. Once again, GB News will also be covering this.

1. Non-EU migrants making asylum applications in EU countries

There are two major ways of assessing the numbers of migrants who form the pool from which many tens of thousands cross to the UK illegally, by setting off across the English Channel in small (but ever-larger) boats.

The traditional method has always been to look at the number of asylum-seekers who have managed to cross into the EU, and this is where we start.

2. Non-EU migrants found to be illegally present in EU countries

The problem of vast numbers of migrants entering the EU, mostly from African and Arab countries, really started taking off after German Chancellor Angela Merkel took office. This became a problem of almost insurmountable proportions in 2015 when she unilaterally declared the equivalent of ‘All Welcome Here’. She did this without any prior notice to, or approval from, the other member countries, including the United Kingdom.

Asylum applications only tell part of the story, however

Traditionally the migrant problem has been measured by the number of asylum applications received, but this only tells part of the story. For the first time we can now show the number of illegal migrants detected within the EU’s borders.

We have been able to qualify this data in order to exclude those who are found at borders or in their immediate proximity. Our chart below, published for the first time, shows the number of illegal migrants who have been detected by the authorities within each country’s borders. This shows the numbers who have successfully evaded any border controls and visa regulations and who were found to be illegally present ‘in-country’.

Clearly this is of particular interest to British readers, as it indicates how many more may be seeking eventually to make their way to the UK.

This second set of data is significant as it gives some idea of the extent of the illegal migrant problem in the EU which does not ‘appear on the radar’. These are migrants who have chosen to avoid contact with the authorities. It is also self-evident that 2.3 million is only the number for those illegal migrants who have been caught. It must be presumed that – just as in the UK – the ability of the authorities to locate these individuals is woefully inadequate.

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Observations

The information we and Facts4EU have presented above provides an overview of the illegal migrant problem which continues to plague the EU. As we pointed out, the problem became particularly acute after the intervention of Angela Merkel as German Chancellor when she virtually opened the EU’s doors. 10 years later, the EU – and the UK – continue to feel the effects.

As our colleagues at Facts4EU.Org showed in their report yesterday, the EU has thrown billions at African and Arab countries in an effort to increase the standards of living there, and perhaps make their populations less likely to make the journey north. The only consolation for the British taxpayer is that the UK is no longer obligated in any way to send money to the EU, only to see its aid badged as “Aid from the EU” when it is spent in those countries.

With regard to the unique data we have presented on the detections of millions of illegal migrants in EU countries, we do not for one moment advocate any form of ‘police state’ in the United Kingdom (or in the EU27), where people are required to register for a digital ID. This would be an authoritarian answer to a dilemma which is best handled in other ways.

One answer would be for all companies to be subject to large fines and for directors to be liable to prosecution, if they are found to be employing anyone who does not have the legal right to work in the UK. This would not only require action from the Home Office, but also by a dedicated department within HMRC.

Other answers include actions by health authorities and by the education sector. These are subjects we would like to return to, if we are still around to do so.

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Main image: Montage © Facts4EU.Org and Stand for Our Sovereignty 2025