Five people have died in an attempt to cross the Channel near the town of Wimereux, south of Calais, according to reports.

A spokesperson for France’s national police told Reuters that five asylum seekers had died, while the French coastguard confirmed there was a failed attempt to cross the Channel on Tuesday morning.

According to the newspaper La Voix du Nord, helicopters and rescue boats were mobilised for ongoing searches.

The incident comes the morning after Rishi Sunak’s UK government passed legislation to allow it to deport asylum seekers who arrive in the UK on small boats to Rwanda.

The UK’s illegal migration minister, Michael Tomlinson, said there had been deaths in the Channel now for nine consecutive months.

Asked about the reports on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, he said: “It is absolutely chilling to hear that.”

(Source: The Guardian)