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Britain said it will begin implementing a deal to return some migrants who arrive on small boats to France within days, a key part of its plans to cut illegal migration, after a treaty on the arrangement is ratified on Tuesday.
Under the new deal, France has agreed to accept the return of undocumented people arriving in Britain by small boats, in exchange for Britain agreeing to accept an equal number of legitimate asylum seekers with British family connections.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron announced the "one in, one out" pilot scheme on migrant returns last month.
More than 25,000 people have come to Britain on small boats so far in 2025, and Starmer has pledged to "smash the gangs" of smugglers to try to reduce the number of arrivals.
Starmer, whose popularity has fallen since winning an election landslide last year, is facing pressure to stop small boats from Nigel Farage's Reform UK party, which leads national opinion polls.
In recent weeks in England, there have been a number of protests around hotels housing the asylum seekers who have arrived on small boats, attended by both anti-immigration and pro-immigration groups.