The Royal Navy can be brought in to tackle small boats crossing the English Channel “if needed”, a minister has said.
After Donald Trump called on Sir Keir Starmer to use the military to bring illegal migration under control, Peter Kyle said Britain’s armed forces are currently focused on “key issues around the world”.
But he said “we do have the functional relationship that we need between our military and keeping our borders safe and secure”.
The tech secretary told BBC Breakfast: “What Donald Trump suggested was the military are used, but we have the UK Border Force that is now established and has been reinforced and bolstered and has new powers under this government.
“The Navy actually does have a working relationship with the UK Border Force, and the Navy can be called upon if needed.
“So we do have the functional relationship that we need between our military and keeping our borders safe and secure but what we really need at the moment is our military focused on all of those really key issues around the world, directly relating to our national defence.”
It came after the US president was asked what advice he would give Sir Keir on following US successes in cracking down on irregular migration.
Mr Trump said: “I told the prime minister I would stop it. It doesn’t matter if you pull out the military.”
He said that his administration had prevented “millions” coming over the border, adding that migration “destroys countries from within”.
“We had millions of people coming in, totally unchecked, totally undetected from the Biden administration,” he told reporters. “[About] 25 million, in my opinion, that would be about 25 million. They came from prisons. They came from mental institutions. They were gang members … they came from everywhere.”
Turning to Sir Keir, he added: “I think your situation is very similar. You have people coming in and I told the prime minister I would stop it, and it doesn’t matter if you call out the military, it doesn’t matter what means you use.
“It destroys countries from within, and we’re actually now removing a lot of the people that came into our country.”
The prime minister said illegal migration was an issue his government had been taking “incredibly seriously” and highlighted the small returns deal he has struck with France.
“It is important we’re able to prove it can be done before starting successfully to roll [the scheme] out as we planned.”
It comes as an Eritrean man was deported to France under the scheme as the second migrant sent back across the Channel.
