UK tells France: Migrant money is coming

The UK said Monday that over 60 million euros promised to France to stop cross-Channel migrant boats was coming, after Paris complained that none had been paid yet amid a surge in the perilous crossings.

British Home Secretary Priti Patel has reportedly threatened to withhold the package worth £54 million ($74 million, 64 million euros) in light of record numbers of migrants arriving from France.

But Damian Hinds, a minister in Patel's department, said the money would be paid "in the coming weeks".

He told BBC television that an "administrative process" rather than any "political question" had led to the payment delay.

"I would like to see increased activity, increased turnback (of migrants)" Hinds added.

"France is a safe country. If you are seeking asylum, you should claim it in the first safe country you come to."

French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin on Saturday called for the start of talks for a migration treaty between the European Union and the UK, which has now left the EU, and complained that none of the money had been forthcoming yet.

Under an agreement reached in July, the UK agreed to finance border security in northern France.

"We call on the British to keep their promise of financing since we are maintaining the border for them," Darmanin said on a visit to the Channel coast.

A total of 15,400 people attempted to cross the Channel in the first eight months of this year, up 50 percent over the figure for the whole of 2020, according to French coastguard statistics.

At least 491 people including children arrived by boat in Britain from France on Saturday alone, according to the Press Association news agency.

To the anger of refugee groups, the UK government is pushing through new legislation that would significantly toughen penalties against such migration, and Patel says she is reviewing maritime tactics to deter people-smugglers.

"We make no apology for securing our borders and exploring all possible options to save lives by ending these horrific journeys," she told the annual conference of Britain's ruling Conservative party last week.

There was also "no reason" why migrants should want to leave France, which was not a country "riven by war or conflict", Patel said.