Sir Keir Starmer has assured GB News viewers he is “absolutely determined” to tackle the small boats crisis in the Channel, and “understands the frustration” from Britons.
In an exclusive interview, the Prime Minister told GB News Political Editor Christopher Hope under the Labour Government, there has been a “record number of arrests” with their plan to “smash the gangs”.
Pressed by Christopher on the increasing number of Channel crossings, Sir Keir was asked when the Government will “stop the crossings” all together.
He told the PM: “Hundreds of crossings again this week – when will we stop these crossings? That’s what our viewers are crying out for?”
Sir Keir responded: “I know they are, and I understand their concern, and we have brought the numbers down.
“I said that we would smash the gangs, and w’ve done record amounts of arrests.”
The Prime Minister detailed a new arrangement with the French authorities, which would introduce a “drone task force” on the French border.
He told GB News: “We’ve just had a new arrangement with the French that we will have a task force with drones, doing much more surveillance on the beaches.
“And so we’re gradually ramping up the work that we’re doing, it is having an effect, but it will take time.”
Addressing the concerns of GB News viewers, Sir Keir made clear that he “understands the frustration” expressed by Britons about the migrant crisis.
He assured: “Do I understand the frustration that your viewers have? Yes.
“Nobody but nobody should be making that journey across the Channel, and I’m absolutely determined to tackle it.”
Turning to Sir Keir’s leadership, Christopher quizzed the Prime Minister on whether the lost confidence in him from backbenchers is because “he is the problem”.
Strongly disagreeing with Christopher, Sir Keir hit back: “Well, Chris, we won a landslide victory in July 2024, and as soon as we did that, people said to me, it’s not possible to stabilise the economy and invest in your public services.
“We’ve done both, we’ve invested in our NHS, waiting lists coming down at the highest rate for 17 years, the economy has stabilised. That’s hugely important, because ask anybody across the country, all your viewers, and they’ll say the cost of living is the number one concern.”
He added: “People have said to me, you won’t get migration down, it was nearly a million under the last Government, lawful migration. It’s right down, it’s less than a fifth of that now under this Government.
“We’re doing lots of work to tackle the small boats, so all of the things that people said couldn’t be done, we are slowly but surely proving them wrong. And these things are the thing that matter most.”
Sir Keir told GB News he has a “laser focus” on what “matter most” to the People’s Channel viewers.
He concluded: “I do know that people want to spend time with their children, and so we’ve got the summer savings package that comes into effect in August. I’m very pleased about that. A laser focus, really, on what matters most to your viewers.
“And here we are at the G7, Iran, Ukraine, big global events, and lots of stuff going on in politics, but actually, for the vast majority of people, it’s cost of living can I pay the bills, can I have a bit of time to myself with my family, do some of the things that make life worth living. That’s what I focus on.”
