Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said they had failed to stop thousands of migrants crossing the Channel in small boats, accusing France of “taking no action whatsoever at sea and often ushering the illegal immigrants into UK waters”.
“Yet when a UK fishing vessel is in French waters all of a sudden they are magically able to act. If the French can now intercept boats then they should start stopping the boats with illegal immigrants – as international law obliges them to do.”
The UK and the EU have struck a deal that covers fishing, trade, defence, energy and strengthening ties in a number of policy areas still up for negotiation.
A key part of the deal involves giving European fishing boats a further 12 years of access to British waters in exchange for easing some trade frictions.
Critics from the Conservatives and Reform UK described the deal as a “surrender” to the EU, while the Liberal Democrats said the government had taken some “positive first steps” to rebuilding ties with Europe.
SANGHA KOMMUNE (SSR) 