Monday 4 July 2022 12:24 PM Traffickers WON'T get life in prison as prosecutors say sentences of two to ... trends now

Priti Patel's vow to hand life jail terms to people smugglers caught piloting a dinghy of migrants across the Channel was shot down today.

Tougher sentences under the Nationality and Borders Act increased the maximum jail term for 'assisting unlawful immigration' from 14 years to life under new measures which came into force last week.

The change in the law came as more than 3,000 migrants crossed the Channel to the UK in June - the highest monthly total this year. 

But in another blow to the Home Secretary's vow to shut down cross-Channel trafficking - after her Rwanda plan failed to take off last month - prosecution guidelines drawn up by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said that that sentences of between two or three years in prison 'will be appropriate for pilots of small boats with their "hand on the tiller"." 

If the sentence is two to three years, it could mean that the dinghy pilots could be out in a year to 18 months if they behave well in prison. 

The conclusion, in a judgment from the Court of Appeal, led to one legal expert telling The Independent: 'Nobody is going to be getting anywhere near life', adding: 'The maximum sentence of life has been briefed in press releases to look like the government is being tough, in the knowledge that once these cases go before the court no one will get life'. 

The Home Office has insisted that the change in the law will land tougher sentences. MailOnline has asked the Government department to comment.