Britain set to hand over £450 MILLION to France for more beach patrols and new migrant centre

TRENDING Stories Videos Your Say The detention centre, originally intended to become fully operational this year, has been delayed by planning issues.Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is said to be determined to force France to finish the detention centre before any further negotiations can continue.The Home Office last year offered to extend the existing deal until 2027, conditional on the completion of the construction of this facility.Downing Street agreed to help fund the centre with the hopes that French authorities would use it to detain and remove migrants attempting to cross the Channel from France's shores.Ms Mahmood is said to favour a model where Britain would only pay France in proportion to successful interceptions made by France's migrant patrols.French authorities currently intercept around 37 per cent of attempted crossings - down from more than 50 per cent in 2023 when the deal, worth nearly £500million, was agreed.Reform UK's spokesman for Home Affairs, Zia Yusuf, said on social media that his party would demand a full refund.He said: Tory and Labour governments have paid £700 million so far, and the boats keep coming in record numbers.LATEST ON THE MIGRANT CRISIS:Donald Trump's ex-Border Patrol chief reveals how Britain's migrant crisis can FINALLY be solvedTwo small boat migrants wanted for gang rape in Denmark allowed to claim benefits in BritainPlans to convert university student flats into asylum seeker hostel BLOCKED by councilThe French are laughing at us.Reform would scrap the deal and demand a full refund from the French.GB News revealed earlier this week that nearly 1,000 migrants crossed the Channel in just six days, taking advantage of improved weather conditions.The British taxpayer currently contributes the majority of border patrol funding.Figures released by the French Government earlier this month revealed the UK provided 62 per cent of the total cost to France of patrolling the northern coast for illegal migrants.This means that £155 million was covered by British taxpayers of the £250 million available.Last week, a spokesman for the Prime Minister said: I won’t get ahead of the negotiations but we are looking at how we can build flexibility and innovation into any new deal with the French to ensure that there is long-term value for money and a real impact on small boat crossings.He added there was no single silver bullet to deal with illegal migration, and the deal was just one tool in our armory.The Home Office said: France is our most important migration partner and together our joint work is bearing down on small boat crossings.We have prevented over 40,000 crossing attempts by illegal migrants since this government took office. Our landmark deal means illegal migrants who arrive on small boats are being sent back to France. Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter