Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has authorised the use of shocking pictures not normally allowed in advertising campaigns, which will be shown to asylum seekers in France
Migrants will be shown shocking images of torn apart dinghies and people struggling to stay afloat in icy waters to deter them from trying to cross the Channel in small boats.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has authorised the use of grim pictures not normally allowed in advertising campaigns, which will be shown to asylum seekers in France.
A new leaflet features an image of an asylum seeker struggling to keep their head above the water, captioned: “Don’t waste your money. Don’t risk your life. Don’t cross the Channel.”
Another states: “People get trampled on and crushed to death in these overcrowded boats. Many children have died this way. By getting on a boat, you could kill someone else – including a child.”
The Home Secretary is preparing to set out sweeping reforms to the immigration and asylum system next week as she seeks to reduce incentives to come to Britain and to make it easier to deport illegal migrants.
READ MORE: Migrant who returned to UK by small boat after being removed gets deported again
Ms Mahmood is expected to model some of her reforms on the hard-line system in Denmark, which has tighter rules on family reunion and allows most refugees to only stay temporarily.
It comes as the Government faces an uphill battle to drive down the numbers of people making the perilous Channel crossing to Britain in flimsy vessels.
Some 36,734 migrants had arrived in small boats in 2025, as of October 21 – the second highest figure after 2022.
So far, 94 people have been returned to France under a ‘one in one out’ pilot agreed in July. But two migrants who were removed under the scheme came back to Britain, and had to be detained again.
The UK is trying to deter people from making the journey from France with warnings about the dangers of trying to cross the Channel in overcrowded and often unseaworthy craft.
Since 2019, over 160 people have died attempting to make the crossing.
Vile people smugglers are also cramming more people into fewer boats, leading to passengers being trampled on and crushed.
The average number of people has risen to 56 per boat in the year to June, compared with 51 the previous year.
Border Security Minister Alex Norris said: “Anyone hoping to enter the UK illegally must be shown the stark truth: if you try to cross in a small boat, you and your family could die.
“This Government will not stand by and let people smugglers peddle these illegal, dangerous journeys using lies and deceit.”
Leaflets produced by the UK are being given to migrants in France as part of a campaign with the UK and French Governments.
Giant digital billboards with warnings were installed in northern France in September, strategically placed along key routes used by smugglers to reach the beaches.