Migrants heading for UK die after boat sinks

Several migrants headed for the UK have drowned in the Channel near Calais after their boat sank, the French government has said.

A rescue operation is under way after a fisherman sounded the alarm, a French coastguard spokesman said.

According to a French interior ministry statement reported by the AFP news agency, a further five people were recovered unconscious from the water.

It comes amid record numbers of migrants making the crossing.

On Monday, the number of migrants to have reached the UK by boat this year surpassed more than three times the 2020 total.

More than 1,000 migrants arrived in one day earlier this month - a new record.

This week, Home Secretary Priti Patel described the number of illegal migrants departing France as "unacceptable".

She said the government's Nationality and Borders Bill was the "long-term solution" to tackling the issue "on top of a raft of operational and diplomatic work".