Lee Anderson visits Calais migrant camps, debates small boat crossings
Lee Anderson visited migrant camps in Calais and discussed small boat crossings with guests on GB News, highlighting ongoing immigration issues.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
Lee Anderson, the former Conservative deputy chairman, visited migrant camps in Calais this week and then used his television show to debate the effectiveness of the government's approach to small boat crossings. During his visit, Anderson said he saw a camp of around 2,500 people near a nuclear power station, and that French police repeatedly asked his team for identification while, in his view, doing little to stop migrants from attempting to reach the UK.
On the programme, Anderson clashed with guest Benjamin Butterworth, who argued that the current policy is working. Butterworth pointed to official figures showing that small boat crossings in the first half of this year were almost half of those in the same period last year, and that 60% of attempted launches from the French coast are stopped. He also said the number of deportations is rising and the cost of hotels for asylum seekers is falling.
Anderson and fellow guest Emma Trimmel rejected that assessment. Anderson said the camps are getting bigger and that police only stop boats, not people, who will try again and again. He called for physical barriers, the deployment of the army, and a willingness to leave the European Convention on Human Rights if necessary to deport migrants. Trimmel accused Butterworth of peddling "rubbish" and said deportations are a "drop in the ocean" without leaving the ECHR.
Butterworth countered that leaving the ECHR is not required, citing Denmark and Spain as examples of countries that have returned migrants without withdrawing from the convention. He also challenged Anderson's claim that migrants do not speak English, saying that people might pretend not to understand him. Anderson responded that in the camps he visited, he found only one person who knew a few words of English.
The exchange highlighted a deep divide over how to handle the crisis, with Anderson and Trimmel demanding tougher action and Butterworth defending the current record as a success. The programme ended without agreement, but it underscored the ongoing political battle over immigration policy.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | GB News |
|---|---|
| 60% of attempted small boat launches from France are stopped. | |
| A migrant camp in Calais contains around 2,500 people. | |
| Small boat crossings in the first half of the year were almost half of the same period last year. |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
The channel gave a platform to Lee Anderson's first-hand account from Calais and framed the debate around the need for tougher action, with Anderson and co-guest Emma Trimmel repeatedly challenging the government's progress. The tone was confrontational, with Anderson dismissing Butterworth's statistics and calling for more aggressive measures such as pushbacks and leaving the ECHR.
- “I've been to see the camps, the migrant camps, we've met with the police.”
- “They actually treat us like the invaders, Benjamin.”
- “We need to be able to push people back.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.