Two RNLI lifeboats carrying around 140 Channel migrants were turned away from Southampton and Portsmouth Harbour before eventually landing at Eastney, near Portsmouth, where they were met by more than 500 masked protesters. The confrontation saw police officers injured and vehicles damaged, prompting sharp criticism from Portsmouth City Council leader Steve Pitt, who accused the Home Office of "poor judgment" and said the decision to land at Eastney was "a completely unsuitable location" that "put lives at risk."

Marine VHF radio broadcasts revealed that Southampton Vessel Traffic Service and the King's Harbour Master Portsmouth denied the lifeboats, from Bembridge and Yarmouth, permission to enter, warning of possible criminal prosecution if they did so, forcing the crews to sail further along the coast to Eastney. Associated British Ports said it declined a Southampton landing request because the port lacked suitable reception facilities. The migrants had crossed roughly 70 miles from Normandy, reportedly the longest such Channel crossing on record, and the landing came a day after separate anti-migrant protests blocked traffic at Dover. Hampshire Police Federation said officers were pushed off motorbikes and pelted with bricks before the crowd was dispersed in the early hours of Monday, with coaches eventually able to leave Portsmouth to take migrants elsewhere for processing.