JUST 155 of 29,437 migrants who illegally crossed the Channel in small boats ... trends now

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Just 155 migrants who crossed the Channel in small boats last year have been removed from the country, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

Ministers have repeatedly vowed tough action on those entering the UK illegally, promising they will be removed with no right to return.

But figures obtained by this newspaper under the Freedom of Information Act show only 155 of the 29,437 migrants who crossed the Channel last year – a paltry 0.5 per cent – have been removed.

Tory MPs last night blamed a barrage of legal challenges for blocking removals and said the figures showed the urgent need for the Rwanda scheme, which they hope will deter others from making the perilous crossing.

Senior Tory MP Neil O'Brien said: 'This just shows why the Rwanda scheme is so important and why we need to overhaul the system. People are able to have infinite numbers of appeals on spurious grounds.