Farce on the Channel: Deported Migrant Returns on a Small Boat, Exposing ‘Gaping Flaw’ in New UK-France Deal
As of October 2025, the UK-France "one in, one out" migrant returns deal is facing intense scrutiny after a deported Iranian migrant successfully returned to Britain on a small boat within weeks of his removal. The highly-publicised agreement, which was designed to be a key deterrent, has only resulted in 42 individuals being returned to France while over 11,000 migrants have arrived since its August implementation. This unprecedented re-entry exposes major practical and legal flaws in the system meant to restore order to the UK border.
In a story sounding more like a dramatic political thriller, Labour’s flagship “one in, one out” migrant returns deal with France has been severely undermined today. It’s been revealed that a migrant — one of the very first individuals deported under the scheme — has brazenly returned to Britain within weeks aboard a small boat.
The controversy deepened further when, in a separate case, a fake migrant accused of pretending to be a woman to access an NHS hospital appeared in court, intensifying pressure on the Government’s border and screening policies.
This shocking re-entry exposes what critics are already dubbing a “gaping flaw” in the highly-publicised treaty, negotiated between Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron. The deal, which aims to deter dangerous Channel crossings, promised to return individuals who arrive illegally in exchange for an equivalent number coming via safe, legal routes.
The case of the unnamed Iranian man, who arrived in the UK illegally in early August and was deported to France on September 19th, is a dramatic setback. According to Home Office sources, Border Officials identified him as a previous deportee after he made a second crossing just weeks later, and he is now being held in an immigration removal centre awaiting further action. The news arrives on the same day that the number of small boat arrivals in 2025 surpassed the total recorded for the whole of 2024, adding intense pressure on the government.
The Legal and Human Drama Unfolds
The migrant, in an account to a national newspaper, claimed he was trafficked and exploited in France, which drove his determined return. “If I had felt that France was safe for me, I would never have returned to the UK,” the Iranian man told The Guardian, describing a life of “terror and stress every day” due to dangerous smugglers. His testimony underscores a profound legal tension between the government’s removal policy and the UK's legal duties to assess claims of human trafficking or asylum before forced deportation.
Legal Context: The Re-Entry Loophole
Under UK law, those who enter unlawfully are liable for immediate removal, established by provisions like Section 10 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. Furthermore, the Illegal Migration Act 2023 (IMA 2023) created a statutory duty for the Home Secretary to remove irregular arrivals and ban them from ever settling in the UK.
However, actually enforcing these tough laws at the border is proving practically impossible. The fact that a deported person could return so quickly highlights the gap between legislative ambition and operational reality. A Home Office spokesperson, responding to the incident, insisted on a firm line: “We will not accept any abuse of our borders. Individuals who are returned under the pilot and subsequently attempt to re-enter the UK illegally will be removed.” This suggests the individual will likely be returned to France again.
According to analysis reviewed by Lawyer Monthly, courts have recently intervened in similar cases, temporarily blocking removals to France on grounds of potential human-rights violations, specifically citing duties under the Refugee Convention. The UK must ensure France provides genuinely safe conditions.
According to Imogen Townley, a solicitor at Wilsons Solicitors who represents asylum seekers affected by the UK–France returns plan, “there has been quite an arbitrary and chaotic approach to selecting people arriving on small boats, without much consideration given — or seemingly any consideration given — to whether they are suitable for return to France.”
A System Under Extreme Strain
struggling to cope. Since the Labour–Macron agreement came into effect, more than 11,000 migrants have reached the UK via small boats, while only 42 individuals have been successfully sent back to France under the new arrangement. Another 23 migrants have been allowed into the UK to “regularise” their status, most expected to claim asylum.
Amid this mounting crisis, a new controversy is emerging: UK landlords are reportedly profiting from government-funded asylum housing contracts, a trend some critics have dubbed the “Passive Income Asylum Strategy.”
Property owners across England are earning tens of thousands in rent from emergency accommodation deals, prompting the question — is it legal, or simply a loophole in an overwhelmed system?
Legal experts point to complex arrangements under the Asylum Support Regulations 2000 and Housing Act 2004, noting that while such leases are technically lawful, they raise significant ethical and regulatory questions about public money, landlord licensing, and exploitation risks.
Migration Watch UK, a think-tank campaigning for tougher border policies, highlighted the ineffectiveness of the current pace. Chairman Alp Mehmet did not mince words, saying: “Without proper deterrence or effective action against those crossing the Channel illegally, numbers will keep rocketing. This is no way to control the border.”
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has blamed the previous government for the escalating situation, while pledging a tougher response. She told reporters: “These figures are shameful—the British people deserve better. We have detained and removed more than 35,000 people who were here illegally. But we must go further and faster.” Critics in Parliament, however, are now warning that the deal, intended to curb crossings, risks becoming little more than an expensive distraction if its key premise—that removals are permanent—can be so easily bypassed.
Watch the news report on this development: BREAKING: Migrant Deported to France Under 'One-In-One-Out' Scheme ALREADY BACK in Britain
UK-France One in, one out Migrant Deal FAQ's
What is the UK-France "one in, one out" migrant deal and why is it failing? The deal, which began in August, allows the UK to return migrants who arrive illegally via small boats to France. In exchange, the UK accepts an equivalent number of pre-vetted asylum seekers from France through a safe, legal route. It is considered a failure because, as of October 2025, over 11,000 migrants have arrived while only 42 individuals have been returned, a number dramatically undercut by a single deported migrant successfully returning to the UK.
Why was the deported migrant able to return to the UK so quickly? The migrant successfully returned via a small boat within weeks of his deportation. The man claimed he was a victim of modern slavery and trafficking by criminal gangs in France and feared for his life there. His re-entry suggests that the initial removal did not adequately address potential human rights or modern slavery claims, which can create legal obstacles to immediate re-deportation and undermine the deal's finality.
What is the key legal challenge facing the UK’s deportation scheme? The scheme faces consistent legal and operational challenges, primarily around the safety of France as a "safe third country" for returns. Asylum seekers and legal groups argue that the UK is not adequately assessing potential claims of modern slavery, torture, or family links to the UK before initiating removal. These legal challenges, like the one that led to the migrant's public return, are delaying and undermining the scheme's core function as a swift deterrent.
