Philp Criticizes Hermer's Comments on Small Boat Policies
Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp has accused Attorney General Lord Hermer of making a "disgraceful slur" after Hermer stated that some right-wing politicians' policies on small boats effectively amounted to allowing "people drown in the water."
Lord Hermer's Remarks on Labour Government's Approach
In an interview with the BBC's Political Thinking podcast, Lord Hermer highlighted that the Labour government had managed to reduce the number of people undertaking the dangerous journey across the English Channel through international cooperation and agreements.
He warned that such agreements could collapse if the UK were to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), a move proposed by the Conservatives and Reform UK.
"So what Reform and the Tories have to answer is: Well what would you do?"
When questioned about the parties' plans to "send them somewhere else," Lord Hermer responded:
"Well I think what they mean by that is let people drown in the water and that is not a British way to deal with it."
Concerns Over Rhetoric from Conservative Figures
Asked whether he believed Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch intended to let people drown in the English Channel, Lord Hermer replied:
"No, no, I think if you hear some of the voices, even to the right of Kemi Badenoch, some of the language and some of rhetoric is deeply, deeply concerning, the kind of disregard for the humanity of people."
Philp's Response to Hermer's Accusations
In response, Chris Philp stated:
"It is a disgraceful slur to suggest that those wanting to end illegal small boat immigration are prepared to see migrants drown.
The fact is that human rights lawyers like Hermer and [Sir Keir] Starmer are part of the problem - because they think the often tenuous human rights claims of illegal immigrants are more important than protecting our border."
Philp further noted that small boat crossings had increased under Sir Keir Starmer's government and added:
"Hermer has the cheek to suggest this is acceptable.
We need to leave the European Convention on Human Rights so that all illegal immigrants can be deported within a week of arrival - then the crossings would soon stop.
But Hermer and his Labour allies are not willing to do this so the illegal immigrants will continue to flood in under Labour."
Statistics on Small Boat Crossings
Since 2018, over 200,000 people have reached the UK by crossing the English Channel in small boats.
The highest number of crossings occurred in 2022, followed by 2025, with more than 40,000 arrivals by small boat in each year.
So far in 2026, the number of crossings is down 38% compared to the same period in 2025, with approximately 9,000 arrivals since January.
Political Positions on the European Convention on Human Rights
The Conservatives and Reform UK argue that leaving the ECHR would facilitate the removal of individuals arriving illegally in the UK by small boats.
The Labour government has rejected this approach, instead seeking to modify how the convention is applied in practice.
Last year, European countries agreed to negotiate the interpretation of the treaty to make it easier to deport illegal migrants.
Reform UK has also pledged to review all asylum claims from the past five years if it gains power.
Lord Hermer's Advocacy for International Cooperation
Lord Hermer, a human rights lawyer and close ally of the prime minister, told the BBC:
"It is only through international cooperation that we're going to be able to deal effectively with small boats - that requires our [ECHR] membership."
He explained the routes migrants take:
"People are coming across to this country from France, from Belgium, they're travelling through Greece, they're taking boat parts through Germany.
They're not coming here because we are members of the Council of Europe and have signed up to the European Convention of Human Rights.
They're travelling from countries that are also signatories and strong supporters of it."
Lord Hermer also noted that since coming to power, the government has signed two agreements with France: one establishing a 'one in one out' arrangement, and another enabling French police to intervene more forcefully to prevent small boats from departing the northern coast of France.
