Jane Moore rips into pro-migrant activists who claim popping inflatable small boats is 'illegal': 'Utter nonsense!'

Video footage shared on social media last month appeared to capture an officer cutting into a rubber boat filled with migrants at Oye-Plage, causing it to deflate and forcing passengers back onto the shore.

Migrant support organisation Utopia 56 lodged a formal complaint with France's Defender of Rights, the country's human rights ombudsman, alleging the police action broke the law and put lives at risk.

Jane Moore has hit out at pro-migrant organisation Utopia 56

The organisation also submitted a separate complaint to the National Gendarmerie Inspectorate.

On social media, Utopia 56 stated that one of their activists had recorded the footage. The organisation wrote: "You can see policemen lacing a boat already in the water, while people are on board.

"This is an extremely dangerous practice for passengers, but it has been used regularly for several years, as evidenced by the people we meet on the coast."

The Pas-de-Calais Gendarmerie has rejected the allegations, maintaining that officers acted entirely within legal boundaries.

A spokesperson explained that the vessel had not been at sea but had become grounded after experiencing a flotation malfunction.

Officers disabled the craft to stop it from returning to the water, thereby preventing migrants from facing additional dangers during an attempted crossing, the spokesperson added.

Reacting to the claims, as well as the heatwave currently engulfing the UK, Ms Moore made her thoughts on the row crystal clear.

"The hot weather has seen a spike in successful small-boat crossings," she began in her latest newspaper column.

The ITV star went on: "Meanwhile, it has emerged some of those deported under the 'one in, one out' deal are sneaking back here on lorries, and 11 returning migrants (that we know of) are currently going through the deportation process again.

"Meanwhile, when French police actually did what we pay them for and punctured a dinghy about to set off for the UK, migrant charity Utopia 56 declared their actions 'illegal' and warned they had put lives in danger.

"What utter nonsense. The boat was deflated in shin-deep water to stop it from entering the Channel, which averages a depth of 207ft.

"So actually, puncturing it may have saved lives, not the other way round," she signed off in The Sun.

Jane Moore wrote the blistering assessment in her latest newspaper column

PA

The incident Ms Moore was referring to comes as Britain and France pursue enhanced cooperation to tackle Channel crossings under a landmark agreement worth £662 million announced in April.

The three-year arrangement commits £500 million to strengthening enforcement operations along northern French coastlines, with a further £160 million contingent on the effectiveness of new strategies.

As part of the deal, France will deploy drones valued at millions of pounds, two helicopters, and an advanced camera network aimed at intercepting smuggling networks and those attempting illegal crossings.

Police officers trained in riot control will also be stationed on French beaches under the terms of the agreement, which the Home Office described as designed to "put people smugglers behind bars".

French efforts to prevent crossings have faced sharp criticism, with data from earlier this year revealing that just 35 per cent of attempted journeys were stopped in the previous 12 months.

More than 41,000 people reached Britain by small boat while only 22,476 attempts were intercepted, prompting Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp to brand the prevention rate "pathetic".

Recent figures paint a more complex picture. Home Office data recorded 710 arrivals on Monday across 11 vessels, marking the highest single-day total of 2026 following a fortnight of poor weather.

However, the 9,852 crossings recorded by June 21 represent a 40 per cent reduction compared with the equivalent period last year.