A teenage asylum seeker admitted he was happy to be in the UK as he arrived on a Kent beach after making the dangerous trip across the English Channel.

The 17-year-old, from Eritrea in East Africa, was one of dozens of people picked up the by RNLI and brought safely ashore at Dungeness yesterday.

As he walked up the shingle towards the lifeboat station he told the PA news agency he was happy to be here.

Similarly, one woman who arrived, wearing a black jacket and face mask, explained she had come from Iran, while others fell to the ground in prayer after making the journey.

Just last month a 27-year-old man, also from Eritrea, died after diving into the Channel when the boat carrying him and 36 others sank.

At around 2.30pm a lifeboat carrying a dozen people landed at Dungeness, where they were met by immigration staff and police.

Later at 4.40pm, around 50 people, including two babies being cradled, arrived at the same beach aboard and wall-weather boat.

'We remain determined to fix the broken asylum system...'

Despite the dangers of trying to reach the county across the waters, crossings have continued and it is thought around 785 asylum seekers made the trip on Monday.

Dover and Deal MP Natalie Elphicke, in a pair of tweets posted yesterday, accused officials in France of effectively "waving them through" with a "cheery Bon Voyage" and called for a tougher stance on the issue.

It comes as Home Secretary Priti Patel is expected to discuss the matter with her French counterpart Gerald Darmanin at the three-day G7 interior ministers’ meeting in London.

Earlier this year, Ms Patel and her French counterpart announced an agreement to more than double the number of police patrolling French beaches.

It was the second pledge of its kind in a year, in a bid to prevent illegal migration and stop small boats from leaving France.

As part of the deal, the government pledged to give France £54 million to support its efforts to stop small boat crossings.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said UK and French officials were “working on the implementation” of the deal and that “significant” funding provided in November had already led to increased patrols and “enhanced intelligence”.

He added: “Following a long period of poor weather, we have seen an increase in crossings as criminal gangs seek to exploit the improved sea conditions.

“This is still extremely dangerous. We remain determined to fix the broken asylum system and break the business model of people smugglers who put lives at risk, and welcome people through safe and legal routes.”

Labour’s shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds called for the government to focus on finding a “workable solution with the French authorities, tackling vile people-smuggling gangs and properly managing safe routes to prevent people risking their lives”.

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