Conservative shadow minister Chris Philp has criticised the government's migration agreement with France after gendarmes reportedly told him they had been ordered not to intervene while migrants prepared to board small boats. Philp said the encounter undermined claims that the deal, struck by Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, would curb Channel crossings, arguing it exposed a gap between ministerial promises and what is actually happening on French beaches. The claim adds to ongoing political pressure over the effectiveness of UK-France cooperation on small boat crossings.

Philp said he witnessed migrants waiting to board boats while French officers stood by, telling him their instructions were not to intervene, which he presented as evidence the France deal was failing to stop departures. The intervention comes amid continued scrutiny of the government's migration strategy and the practical enforcement of agreements meant to disrupt smuggling gangs and reduce small boat arrivals. Mahmood's department has previously defended the arrangement as part of broader efforts to tackle crossings, though critics including Philp argue enforcement on the ground remains inconsistent.