Is SW coast the next target for desperate immigrants?

Concerns have been raised that the SW coast could become a new target for desperate immigramts after Coastguards intercepted a dinghy carrying 18 Albanians trying to reach the Kent coast.

It has emerged that the number of Border Force boats patrolling Britain’s coastline was reduced to three after one was deployed to the Aegean Sea to patrol for migrant smuggling vessels.

The former head of the Navy Admiral Lord West told the Daily Mail: "We are taking a calculated risk with our own territorial waters.

"Already we have seen these illegal immigrants and I don’t believe there aren’t clever traffickers using the smaller ports to send them and I’m sure terrorists are aware of the route too.

"We need to get a grip on this. We are taking a gamble that nothing will ever happen in our seas and that is a risky view to take given the dangerous world we are in."

Referring to the boat rescue in Kent Andrew Rosindell, Tory MP for Romford, said: "What this shows is that the pressures on immigration are becoming more and more acute.

"If people are already getting as far as they have got, it shows we need to completely up our game on the control of the seas to ensure that illegal immigrants are not going to get into the country."