Official figures reveal the Home Office spent £186 million over 12 months detaining and transporting illegal migrants around the UK, equating to more than £500,000 a day. The disclosure comes amid mounting political pressure over Channel crossings, with small boat arrivals since Labour took power surpassing 80,000 this month, fuelled partly by a rise in larger "mega-dinghies" carrying over 100 people at once. The scale of spending has drawn sharp criticism from opposition figures and taxpayer groups, who argue the sums represent poor value for public money.

The figures, covering June 2025 to May 2026 and first reported by the Sun, show £137 million (£375,564 a day) went on escorting migrants between prisons, police stations, hospitals and holding centres within the UK, while £48 million funded overseas escorts for deportation flights. Most of the money goes to contractor Mitie, which has run the process for the Home Office since 2018. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp called the spending "a catastrophic waste of taxpayers' hard-earned money", while the TaxPayers' Alliance urged the Home Office to curb the costs immediately; a Home Office spokesman said the figures also cover broader detention facilities and operational costs.