Britain's 'small boats' obsession misses the point on migration

Britain's 'small boats' obsession misses the point on migration Submitted by Barry Malone on Mon, 08/24/2026 - 11:53 Almost a month after the cynical weaponisation of Ceuta, racist scaremongering has kept its place at the top of the agenda Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham speaks with interim Chief Coastguard and Border Security Commander as they stand by a recovered boat used by migrants crossing the English Channel, in Dover, on 2 August 2026 (AFP) On For a while there, it seemed like they’d stopped talking about it. Andy Burnham had become prime minister and hit the ground running with a series of small but respectable measures aimed at alleviating what, for most people, is the most pressing problem in Britain: the cost of living. At the same time, Nigel Farage, leader of the hard-right Reform UK, had become a joke, running against a comedian with a bin on his head in a pointless by-election .